Spira's Sphere
by M'jai
Summary: Re-upload of sequel to "Spira's Dream". As Tidus struggles to come to terms with the truth about what he is, the search for Spira's truth begins.
1. Chapter 1: Within This Skin

**Spira's Sphere**

by M'jai

Written 9/2005

Re-uploaded and revised 4 June 2010

))((

This is the sequel to _Spira's Dream_ - it would be best to read that story first. This story is heavily dependent on the concepts originally presented in that one.

))((

Disclaimer:

The setting, characters, and inspiration for the plot all belong to Square Enix. Fans of the game will recognize which content is not mine, so I do not even pretend to take credit for it. My appreciation goes out to Square Enix and their wonderful game designers for giving us such inspiring entertainment.

Any resemblance between my fan-fic and other FFX2 fan-fics is purely unintentional. We are all playing the same game, after all, so it's pretty easy to draw some similar theories out of it. Hopefully, it will pack a few new surprises, though.

))((

Chapter 1: Within this Skin

Yuna gathered the last of the spheres that she had been labeling and placed them in a crate, careful to cushion them with a blanket. Then, she stepped back to take another look at her packing job. Her brows knit in consternation for a moment, but then she remembered where another blanket would be. Capping the pen and humming to herself, she skipped up the stairs of the bridge and headed down the hall to the lift. She touched the engine room button and the doors closed with a hiss. The lift lowered her into the belly of the airship, and when the doors opened once more, she walked down a second set of stairs to the right corner. A smile graced her lips as she approached because the blankets weren't all that she was happy to see there.

Tidus was on one of the borrowed blankets doing sit-ups. Fulfilling his promise to Wakka to take on the job of coaching the Besaid Aurochs blitzball team, he faithfully tested his fitness routine on himself each morning before making his teammates run through his drills. When he noticed her watching him in admiration from the bottom of the stairs, without breaking his stride doing the crunches, he gave a short, mischievous kiss to his bicep.

Yuna laughed lightly and rolled her eyes as she crossed the floor toward him. "You know, if you flirt with yourself too much, then there's no need for me to do it."

He grinned. "Ah, but if _you_ flirt with me, then I'll easily get distracted and lose my count."

Yuna giggled at the memory of scheming with Rikku to distract him from catching a pass. The ball had hit the side of his head seconds before Wakka nailed him with a harsh tackle. "Doesn't this floor hurt your back?" She knelt at his feet and folded her arms across his knees, resting her chin on them.

Tidus drew himself up in a crunch and held the position for a few seconds to face her. "Not much different from having to sleep on it. Fifteen. Set five, one, ..." He vocally marked his place starting a new set of repetitions, as he lowered his back to the floor.

"It's been two weeks now since you came back. I don't think Brother really meant for you to sleep in the engine room this long."

"Well, the one time I asked about it, he said there was no more space in the men's bunks. Two, ..." Tidus rose eye-level with her again.

"Well, then maybe you could share the loft with us." Yuna smiled so big that her eyes squinted shut.

"Are you kidding me? Brother's tolerating me now, but there's no way he's let me sleep up there." He lowered himself, then curled back up again. "Three, ..."

"You could sleep on the futon sofa at the end."

Tidus gave half a laugh, as he lowered himself to the floor once more. "It doesn't matter if you offer me the shower stall. He's not going to let me sleep in the cabin."

"I'll talk to him about it after I come back from Bevelle."

"Four, ..." He continued counting under his breath as he drew himself forward.

"Would you like to go with me to the conference? I know you've got to get the team ready for the second half of the league games, but since this does involve Zanarkand, I think maybe you should come with me." She playfully tapped the end of his nose making him blink before he could lower himself again.

Tidus winced at the thought. "I'm no good at stuffy, formal things, Yuna. If I have to sit in a hard chair listening to lectures for more than thirty minutes, I start snoring." He pulled himself up once again, but then paused, holding the position for a moment. "Was that four or five?"

"Three," Yuna helpfully answered.

Tidus almost believed her for a moment. "Nah, see, you made me lose count!"

She tried not to laugh. "If you've already done four sets of fifteen, that's 60 sit-ups. I hardly see how being one count off is going to make any difference."

"I always did five sets during game season."

"Then, I'm sure you're strong enough to carry some spheres into Bevelle for me."

"You can swing Caladbolg, but you can't carry a bunch of large marbles?"

She gave him her best kitten look - an easy thing for her to do considering that one eye was forest green and the other was sea blue, just like that of a cat. "Please?"

Tidus continued his uncounted crunches with a groan. He decided to aim for a compromise. "An hour of practice time and a shower first?"

"Deal." She clasped her hands together, pleased. "Oh, and I need one of the extra blankets to finish packing the spheres, so they won't break." She kissed his nose as he came forward again, before he could lower himself back to the floor.

Tidus lowered his hands from behind his head, winced, and rubbed a hand across his sore abdomen. "Kyaaa, talking to you during crunches means more crunch than reps." He sat up, placing his hands on the floor behind himself for support. "You know, I'm thinking of dragging Wakka's butt out of bed today to join us for a run. I mean, I know he's a home body now, but he still loves the game. I want to keep him involved somehow. Think he'll go for it?"

Yuna giggled lightly and stood. "I'm sure he would appreciate your intentions, but rolling him out of bed for a run around the island every morning might get a shoe thrown at you."

"Hey, if I can dodge his tackles; I can dodge a pair of shoes."

Moving to the pile of blankets on the floor, Yuna sifted through them and selected one. Then she changed her mind and drew all of them into her arms. When she turned around, he was standing and offering her the last one. "Thanks."

"Two hours." He repeated his bargain and headed for the door.

"Two hours." Yuna watched him jog down the steps of the hatch and leave for the village. Having him back like this felt ... right. Even the routine tasks of the day were more special just knowing he was around. Hefting the cumbersome blankets into her arms, she headed up the stairs back to the cabin. There, she went straight to the futon sofa and dumped all of the blankets except one. Draping her choice over her arm, she skipped back down the stairs, humming to herself, and headed to the bridge to finish packing the spheres.

))((

Tidus jogged up the beach and down the path toward Besaid Village, coming to a stop outside of the Aurochs' team hut. Everyone on the team was already stretching and getting ready for practice. "All right, I have a stuffy, formal thing to go to in Bevelle in two hours, so all we're going to do today is go once around the island and meet back at the beach for some crunches and passing drills. Go ahead and start without me. I'll catch up to you." The team answered with a few muffled complaints, but Tidus turned in the opposite direction and knocked on the door frame of the little hut across the road to collect his guest of honor.

The curtain was pulled aside with a _woosh_, and Lulu greeted him with a mildly surprised expression. Vidina loudly suckled a drool-slimed fist at her shoulder. "Well, aren't you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed."

"Is Wakka around? I thought I'd invite him on our run."

Lulu chuckled, but stepped aside and tilted her head in invitation for him to enter.

Tidus slipped off his sneakers and ducked between the curtains. Wakka was easy to spot in the one-room hut, sitting on the floor at the tea table with a bowl of tropical fruit and a juiced plate.

"Hey! Come to help climb more palm trees? You should'a seen him scale those trees, yesterday, Lu. Funniest thing I've seen in a long time. He was like a little monkey, except a monkey would know not to hit the really ripe fruit that's directly overhead, ya? He nearly knocked himself senseless." Wakka laughed and popped another piece of sliced palm fruit in his mouth.

Tidus gave him a flat expression and rested his hands at his hips. "Well then, you climb the tree next time."

"More fun watching you do it."

Tidus shook his head and popped a fist against Wakka's shoulder. "Just for that, you're going for a run."

"When?"

"Now."

"Nah, man. My breakfast is still settling." He patted his stomach.

Not taking "no" for an answer, Tidus grabbed Wakka's arm and pulled him up off the floor. "Come on, Coach. Your breakfast doesn't need to settle any more than it already has."

"What do you mean, 'Coach'? You're the captain now." Wakka stood.

"Yeah, and my first act as captain is to make you the official coach. I'll gladly set up the drills and make them work hard, but a team's not a team without its heart and soul. So, ... you're coach."

Wakka blinked at him in disbelief. "You're serious?"

"I'm serious. Look, you don't have to play in the games or attend all the practices. I know you have more important things to take care of now. But, ... the team has talked about it, and it's just not the same without you being there at least some of the time."

Lulu smiled at the gesture and approached her husband. "I think you should take him up on it."

"But, what about -"

"Your son would love to share your enthusiasm some day, Wakka."

Tidus grinned and clapped a hand down on Wakka's shoulder. "Island fun run. Shake a leg, old man." He turned his larger buddy around and began pushing him toward the door.

"_Fun_ run? Are we going the length of the whole island, or something?"

"Nope! Around it."

"What are you trying to do? Kill me?" Wakka loudly protested.

As the two men collected their shoes and left the tent, Lulu held the baby at her chest and used his hand to wave goodbye to them. "Looks like your daddy's going to be very, very sore for the next few days when Uncle Tidus finishes with him."

Vidina smiled at the sound of his mother's voice so near and drew his fist to his mouth once more with a soft, wet coo of agreement.

Lulu chuckled to herself at this development, smooched the baby's cheek, and gracefully stepped back into the shade of the hut. "Well, this is going to be fun."

))((

An hour and forty-five minutes passed before Tidus, sandy and dripping with salt water, ran up the ramp of the Celsius and headed straight for the shower. He came out, still drying his hair, and tried to make himself presentable for the occasion by donning his black, basilisk armor. Then, he tossed the towel to the floor and ran to the lift.

"Right on time," Yuna spoke, not realizing the rush he had been in, as he entered the bridge.

Tidus lifted his chin to find her standing with Rikku and Brother. They had apparently been waiting for his arrival. Yuna was dressed in her most formal sphere - a red and blue ankle-length gown with revealing cut-outs along the sides and center front. She held a formal fan in one hand and had another fan-like comb set in her hair.

Rikku giggled and drew close to Tidus's ear. "Close your mouth, silly," she whispered.

Tidus, not realizing his own astonishment, obeyed with mild embarrassment.

"Well, it's time to go." Yuna stepped forward and clasped her fan between both hands.

He nodded and headed back toward the lift.

"Um, ... you need the spheres?" Yuna pointed to the crate nearby as a reminder.

"Spheres ... Right." Tidus moved behind the crate and lifted it into his arms. Though he had teased her about it earlier, he was quickly surprised by the weight. "So, why isn't anyone else coming?"

"We didn't want to have to dress up fancy." Brother tucked his thumbs under his suspenders and proudly stretched them out a little.

Tidus wondered if Brother _ever_ wore a shirt, or if he just assumed his copious amounts of body ink were sufficient covering.

"It's just not necessary for everyone to be there," Yuna explained. "It's a formal gathering of Spira's leaders as a temporary council, and I was asked to represent Besaid."

"Okay, but don't be surprised if I start to snore," Tidus warned, prompting a swat from Yuna's fan.

The airship set Yuna and Tidus down outside of Bevelle, and together they strolled down the long, mosaic-tiled road toward the city gates. The guards allowed them immediate entry.

Tidus looked up at the lifts that crossed the sky above them. It was ironic, but of all the new civilizations on Spira, Bevelle reminded him the most of Zanarkand. Its fortressed, red walls looked nothing like Zanarkand's ancient towers, and machina were only just now being introduced again, after having been forbidden by the teachings of Yevon for so long; but Bevelle was the only city as old and large as Zanarkand had once been. And yet, this city had destroyed the other. He paused a moment near the balcony to take in the view above and below him, until a gentle tug on his arm drew his attention back to the present. Yuna smiled sweetly at him and coaxed him toward the temple doors.

Inside the temple, robed priests of New Yevon greeted them and escorted them to the lift, which took them up to the second level. There, more priests greeted them. "Lady Yuna, Praetor Baralai will see you straight away," one of them spoke and ushered her into a conference room.

"Lady Yuna." A small-framed, young man with short, white hair came to greet her with a formal Yevonite bow. "Welcome. Everyone else that has been invited to attend the council has already arrived. Please go ahead and take your seat at the table."

"Thank you." Yuna courteously repeated his formal greeting. "I hope you don't mind that I brought someone with me."

"Not a problem. We can just bring in an extra ch-" Baralai's heart skipped a beat as Tidus came closer into view behind her.

"Shuyin!" At the table in the center of the room behind them, Nooj angrily blurted what Baralai was thinking. He reached for his cane and started to stand.

Tidus sighed in light annoyance. _ Here we go again_ ...

"That's not Shuyin." Seated next to Nooj, Gippal took the cane and dropped it back to the floor. "Take a pill. That's Yuna's new friend."

"Old friend, actually." Yuna gently hooked Tidus's elbow and lead him the rest of the way into the conference room to set the crate of spheres down in the corner. "His name is Tidus. Tidus, this is Praetor Baralai, the leader of New Yevon. You've met Gippal of the Machine Faction already. That is Meyvn Nooj of the Youth League. And of course, you already know Kimahri Ronso and Tromell Guado."

"Tidus." Baralai was clearly uncomfortable with the coincidental likeness of the spirit that had possessed and used him in an attempt to destroy Spira recently. He studied the shape of Tidus's face for a moment, noting that he did look a little different. Finally, he made himself smile and gave him a formal welcoming bow. "Nice to meet you."

_ Shuyin_ ... Would he forever be haunted by his physical resemblance to him? Fortunately, only a handful of people had seen Shuyin's face and lived to tell about it, but those who did always mistook him. He could reshape his body for the sake of a game, but no amount of training would help him escape the truth within his own skin. He was still trying to absorb his relationship to the departed spirit that had terrorized Spira for a thousand years. Baralai and Gippal had managed to tuck away their skepticism well enough, but he could tell by the look on Nooj's face that he was going to be tougher to convince. Tidus still felt stupid doing the Zanarkand blitzball cheer as a formal greeting, but he followed etiquette as a gesture of good faith. He hoped it would be enough.


	2. Chapter 2: Stuffy Formal Thing

Chapter 2: Stuffy Formal Thing

Tidus was glad to see Kimahri among the gathering, and made his way to the ronso's side for a moment to give him a more relaxed greeting. "Hey, how come you didn't have to dress up for this fancy thing?"

"Kimahri wear new talisman." The ronso proudly displayed a stone and feather ornament about his massive, blue shoulders. "Tidus look like strong knight in new black armor."

Tidus proudly accepted the compliment and adjusted a bracer over his forearm. "Well, I -"

"Not look like twelve-year-old boy anymore." The ronso's blue lion-like face split into a fanged snarl that was supposed to be a grin.

"_Twelve_?" Tidus could hear Yuna giggling behind him, but when he turned to frown at her, she only patted the chair that had been brought in for him. He gave Kimahri's rock-solid arm a light punch for the remark, then moved to sit down next to her. "I can see I'm going to regret the day I tried to convince him to show more humor." Once he settled, he looked up and noticed Nooj's calculating stare on him. Apparently, the man had no intentions of welcoming him into the fold yet - or perhaps ever.

"Well, since everyone is here now, let's begin." Baralai moved to stand at the head of the table and spoke in his usual soft-toned voice as he addressed the company. "Today is a historical moment for all of Spira. Most of our leaders have put aside their differences to come together to make plans for a monumental idea proposed by Lady Yuna of Besaid." He gestured toward her, but everyone around the table knew her well enough that no further introductions were necessary. "Lady Yuna has had a vision from one of the departed fayth. The fayth suggested that we gather the remaining spheres of Spira's past and build a vault for them in Zanarkand. She has contacted each of us to get our opinions on the matter, and we have voiced our agreement. So, the next step is to put the plan into action. That is why we are here today." He pulled his chair out from the table and seated himself. "Where should we begin?"

"I think," Yuna spoke, "we should begin with spheres." She glanced to Tidus, who stood and collected the crate once more to set on the large table. As he sat down, Yuna continued speaking. "The Gullwings will donate all of the spheres that we have collected to date, except for the ones that we make frequent use of. You may keep them in your vaults with the temple spheres until the completion of the library in Zanarkand."

"Are you sure keeping all of the spheres in one place is wise?" Nooj asked with caution. Leader of the Youth League, the tall, lean man with long, light brown hair was used to demanding that the temples release their own spheres to the public. Now, after much distrust had passed between his own organization and New Yevon, in the wake of the Crimson Squad and Vegnagun crises, he was having to sit back and watch more coveted spheres freely pass into the temple's grasp.

Baralai read between the lines. "The spheres will be safe in the temple's care, Nooj. And I give my word as praetor that they will be released again when the time is right, along with _all_ of the temple's spheres."

Nooj pushed his small, wire glasses up on his nose with the machina fingers of his artificial left hand. "Back it up."

"What would you ask as proof?"

"Youth League guards at the vaults," Nooj suggested.

Baralai didn't look happy with that demand. "On the outside interests that's fine, but ... you want the people who tried to destroy the temples to guard their most precious assets? That would be like handing money to a thief."

"No, it would be more like taking back what the thief stole to begin with."

Gippal cleared his throat loudly and absently turned his pen end-over-end. "You know, the whole purpose of inviting everyone here today was to try to remember what it felt like to work with one another. Now, if you two are going to try to take a chunk out of each other's throats again, ... I'm outta here." Though a black eye patch covered his right eye, the green eye that remained cut toward both of his former buddies like a sharp knife.

Baralai lowered his chin at Gippal's laid-back reprimand. "Very well. We will share guard duty at the vaults, ... but not just with the Youth League. All present parties must assign a rotation of guards."

"And no one shall retain the right of solo watch duty," Nooj insisted. "It will keep everyone honest and prevent a lock out."

Baralai ignored the last remark and looked over his shoulder to one of his advisers, who quickly produced a log book to take notes. "Include that provision in the formal treaty."

"The guado have a treasure room of old spheres recording some of our own history. I shall be glad to donate them to the cause as well." The green-haired leader of the guado, Tromell, folded his long-fingered, large-palmed hands over each other on the table, allowing the wide sleeves of his over-sized coat to drape over them.

"Thank you, Master Tromell." Baralai nodded to his advisers to make note.

Gippal scratched lightly at the eye patch's occasionally itchy, elastic band. "I don't see any hypello hanging out with us today. Did we forget to invite them to the party?"

Baralai couldn't help but chuckle. "If you can find a leader among the hypello, then I will gladly invite him." A chuckle rose up around the table among the participants concerning the lackadaisical nature of the blue frog-like creatures found all over Spira. Baralai continued. "We are in negotiations with the elder councils of Kilika and Luca, of course, so maybe they will eventually join us."

"However big we build the library, it should have space to expand in hopes of more spheres being found." Nooj flipped through his own paperwork he had brought with him and made some notes, as well.

"The Gullwings will continue to hunt spheres," Yuna promised. "It's what we do best, so that will be our contribution to the project."

"Thank you, Yuna. What about the spheres already in circulation?" Baralai raised a valid economical concern for those in the profession of sphere hunting and trading. "Are we going to impose a ban on trade, or is this strictly voluntary?"

"Strictly voluntary." Nooj shifted uncomfortably in his seat, as he glanced toward Tidus again, as if his very presence was a distraction. "No more bans."

"We could make rounds among the sphere hunters we know and see if any of them would be willing to turn in their collection," Yuna suggested.

Gippal slouched back in his chair. "We're not talking about the Seekers, Yuna. Common sphere traders and professional hunters aren't going to want to put themselves out of business by voluntarily giving up their fortune."

"Then, we need an incentive. We could offer a reward. The temple has lots of gil it could spare, doesn't it?" she suggested.

Baralai gave his wide headband a slight adjustment over his brow. "That's a lot to ask of New Yevon for a group project. If there's going to be a reward factor, then shouldn't we all contribute to the funding?"

"If it can get the spheres out of circulation and into the vault, we should all do what we can. The Youth League isn't as well-endowed as New Yevon, though. We will donate based only on what we can afford - nothing more. Imposing a tariff on committee members is not an option." Nooj peered above the rim of his glasses for a moment, as if daring Baralai to challenge him on that, but then he added a brief smile to take some of the edge off of his no-nonsense position. He had trouble reminding himself sometimes that he was among friends once again, instead of enemies.

"Include a provision to set a reward, " Baralai instructed his adviser. "Who will take on the task of actually building the vault?"

"Ronso." Kimahri was the sole person in the room standing, mainly because his large, muscular frame would not be squeezed into a human-sized chair. "Ronso tribe need something to unify the youth. Taking pride in building sacred vault would be good. Ronso are also close to Zanarkand and strong to cut and move stone."

"A logical and admirable decision, Elder Kimahri." Baralai nodded again to his adviser to include that. "The ronso tribe will be in charge of the actual construction."

"Machine Faction can donate tools," Gippal offered. "No offense, but our shovels and drills are bigger and faster than anything a ronso could do by hand. We can also supply hover craft to transport supplies. We'll still need raw muscle, of course ..."

"Ronso will work with Machine Faction to build vault on sacred grounds," Kimahri agreed, twitching his tail - the only display of excitement the stoic ronso was ever known to show.

"The guado have extensive knowledge of how the magic of the spheres works. Perhaps we could work with the storage and display properties of the recovered spheres," Tromell offered. "It would also give us an excuse to gather some of the memory-preserving lake water from Macalania before it completely fades away."

"An excellent idea." Baralai seconded it and nodded to his secretary.

Yuna slipped her small, graceful hand into the air wanting a turn to speak again.

Baralai gestured for her to go ahead.

"I have only one real concern about these plans. We must not forget that Zanarkand is the graveyard for many, many lost souls, including my own father. There has already been one attempt to turn it into a tourist attraction. I don't want that to happen again. The library should be free to all instead of something designed to earn wealth. And the ruins themselves should be guarded separate from it, so that they are off-limits to everyone except expert sphere hunters, who will take care to leave the ruins as they are, as much as possible. If we are building this vault to house the real memories of Zanarkand's dead, then it deserves the same sacred respect that we gave the fayth's dream. Just, ... please, ... let's not forget that the ruins are actually a very large tomb. That's all I want to say."

"A very valid point, Lady Yuna." Baralai gestured to his adviser to bring the log book to him so he could read over what they had determined to add to the document so far. "We will include measures to secure the road into the ruins."

Kimahri gave the structure itself some thought. "Building should look like it belonged to Zanarkand."

"Absolutely." Gippal rose from his chair and walked around the table to open the crate and sift through the blanket-wrapped spheres. "Hey, Yuna, I don't suppose one of those spheres would happen to have an image of a Zanarkand library would it?"

"Several of those spheres give glimpses of Zanarkand, but I don't know if they include a library. Even if we don't find a library in the images, maybe we can somehow look at one of the buildings from different angles and figure out a way to reconstruct it. Is that possible?" Yuna stood to help him sort through the spheres.

Gippal read the label of one sphere and touched the activation button to see a small, static-filled image of the extensive Zanarkand skyline. "Woah. We'll never be able to drag one building out from all of that. Any interior blue-print is completely lost to the sheer size of what's around it."

"Tidus is expert on Zanarkand. Maybe he has memory of interior." Kimahri turned his golden eyes on him.

Nooj faced Tidus with skepticism. "Are you a historian, or a sphere hunter?"

"Neither, really." Tidus shrugged. "I'm a blitz player."

Nooj didn't see the connection as to why a ball player would be consulted about Zanarkand architecture. "Are you very familiar with the ruins?"

"Very. But I don't remember the library all that well. Guess I should have done more reading." Tidus laughed lightly at his own joke, but only Yuna seemed to get it.

"Is there any building complete enough to use as a model for recreating a new one?" Nooj pressed him.

"I ... don't know." Tidus shrugged again. "Other than the temple, I haven't really walked around much to see what's left of the place."

"Then how _exactly_ is he our expert on Zanarkand?" Nooj asked of Kimahri.

"Tidus from Zanarkand. Tidus know Zanarkand in mind and heart." Kimahri thumped a large fist over his furry, blue chest.

The faction trio stared at Tidus in new confusion now. While Kimahri and Tromell knew something of his unique origins, the other three did not. He had met Gippal only briefly, and he had never met Nooj or Baralai before at all. Tidus began to feel strangely uncomfortable about the matter.

"How can he be from Zanarkand?" Baralai asked. "Nobody's lived in those ruins for a thousand years."

Tidus became uncharacteristically silent as Yuna silently pleaded with him to speak. This was why she needed him here.

Tromell folded his large hands on the table and leaned forward. "Lady Yuna's guardian is not actually from Zanarkand as we know it. He is from the dream of the fayth."

The confusion on the faces of the faction leaders changed to deep suspicion.

"The fayth no longer dream." Baralai stated.

"They summoned him, but he lives of his own will now," Yuna tried to explain.

"Like an unsent?" Nooj's severe, intelligent eyes shifted from Yuna back to Tidus.

Yuna frowned at that assumption. "He is not unsent."

"But if he is a dream, then he is not real."

"Yes, he is." She folded her arms over her chest. "I can see him, hear him, touch him -"

"His physical appearance, however convincing, is most likely an illusion. But it is cast about a real soul, I believe." Tromell explained his theory without knowing how close to the truth he actually was.

Baralai now joined Nooj in giving Tidus a severe stare. "_Whose_ soul?" they both asked in unison.

"If you'll excuse me, I think I need some air." Tidus pushed his seat back and gave a brief bow before leaving the room.

))((

Yuna watched him go, but then turned to face the accusing tones of the faction leaders. She could practically read their minds. "Tidus is not Shuyin."

She turned away from the crate of spheres and paced lightly, wringing her hands and reminding herself to refrain from being angry. "I know that Shuyin did terrible things to each of you, and I can't blame you for feeling cautious. But Tidus was sent to me as a guardian on my pilgrimage to Zanarkand, and he's going to start helping us hunt spheres now between games. He's not a danger to you. Please, believe me. He can help us with this." She cast the door a worried look and then turned back to face the table. "Excuse me."

Without waiting for their consent, Yuna exited the room and leaned over the balcony railing to scan the temple floor below for Tidus. There wasn't a trace of him anywhere.


	3. Chapter 3: Sweet Crackers

Chapter 3: Sweet Crackers

Yuna ran to the lift and impatiently gripped the rail as it lowered her to the main floor of the temple. She still saw no sign of Tidus, so she left the building to check the outside balcony where he had paused to admire the view earlier. "Where did he go?" she worried aloud. "Excuse me." She stopped a passing priest. "Did you see a young man with blond hair and black armor go by here?"

"No, Lady Yuna."

She turned and stared at the waterfall, then lifted her gaze to the upper outdoor balcony of the temple. Running back into the temple, she took the lift up once more and exited the door that led to the rest of the city that was tucked away behind the temple walls. Bevelle was a very large city, so she hoped he wasn't wandering aimlessly. "Excuse me." She grabbed a passing guard. "Have you seen a young man with blond hair and black armor?"

"Just a minute ago. He went that way." He pointed to the exterior balcony.

Yuna had been right in guessing where he would choose to go. She ran quickly toward the vine-covered, red-hued walls and passed through the ornate gate that led to the balcony overlooking the outside of the city. There he stood, one foot propped on the bottom section of the rail, while he leaned on his elbows over the top, staring out at the landscape below. She tried to slow her pace as she drew near, so she wouldn't seem overly anxious.

Tidus blinked into the sun, then turned his chin slightly to let her know that he was aware of her presence.

"If it bothers you, ... we won't do it," she stated, sympathetically. "We can pick another place to build the library and let Zanarkand be."

He shrugged. "It's okay. I don't care, really."

So, it wasn't Zanarkand that bothered him. That only left one other possibility - the more obvious one. Yuna made herself step closer, but hesitated to say more. "Shuyin ... possessed them, you know. He's the one that made Nooj try to kill them. They just need time to get to know you. Then, they'll realize they are mistaken." She placed a hand on his back and stroked the supple scales of the basilisk armor.

"He died here. But, at the time, I was still part of him." He blinked into the sun again. "That means I died here, too, ... doesn't it?"

Yuna shook her head. "Shuyin died here. You did not exist yet."

"His memories are exactly like mine up until Sin took me away. I share his soul. We're like ... twin brothers, only I was born a thousand years late. I'm like some kind of partial reincarnation that never really came back to life." He ran his fingers through his shaggy blond mop of hair. "I mean, ... maybe I'm not really him, but he carried me with him all that time."

Yuna wondered if she had done the right thing to ask him to come to the meeting. If it strained his memories of Zanarkand, or if it caused new conflict between the factions, it could mean trouble - trouble that, for all she knew, might weaken his presence here. "You have a strong sense of your own identity. Even Shuyin said that. It's why the fayth couldn't rejoin you. Think of him only as a brother."

Closing his eyes and drawing a deep breath, he became aware of the sun's warmth on his face. He would have to make himself accept her logic, even if it did seem to be in denial.

Yuna studied the unspoken fears that floated across his face like a cloud drifting over the Calm Lands. She could not bring herself to drag him back into that meeting - not like this. "Would you like to see the rest of Bevelle? I don't think you've ever had the chance to see the city properly."

After a moment of contemplation, he straightened and took her hand. "Okay." Allowing her to lead him away from the balcony, he tried to put on a smile, ... for her sake. "So, you were born here, right?"

"Yes. I lived here until I was seven, ... until my father ended his journey with Sir Auron and Sir Jecht. Sir Auron had befriended Kimahri here in Bevelle when he was outcast from the ronso tribe, and recommended him to be my temporary guardian. When my father didn't come back, Sir Auron asked Kimahri to take me to Besaid because that was what my father had asked him to do. He liked it there so much." Yuna gave Tidus a smile as they walked. "So, Kimahri took care of me there, until I was old enough to apprentice as a summoner. But I still remember quite a bit of this place." She led him down into the main street of the city proper, where little booths and thin trees lined both sides of the colorful tile path leading to and from the temple. "My father used to bring me here every week for a dining out treat. And he'd always buy me a bag of sweet crackers that came with a shell ring." She laughed lightly at the memory and pulled him along behind her as she led the way. "This is where I met Sir Jecht, too, after my dad and Sir Auron found him -"

"- in jail on drunken and disorderly conduct," Tidus flatly finished for her, remembering the sphere they had found of the incident.

Yuna sighed lightly at his lingering bad opinions of his father. "Sir Jecht was a sweet man."

"To you, maybe."

"He may have had problems showing it, but he did care for you. Everyone has something that they're not good at. Maybe his was not being able to open up to people. But you are an amazingly open person in spite of that. You taught him something about himself in the end." Yuna refused to let his temporary discouragement get the best of him. Stopping in front of a vendor, she searched her handbag for some gil. She selected two bags of sweet crackers, paid for them, and then turned back around to offer him one.

Tidus glanced from her to the bag with reservation.

"Would you rather have a chocolate-covered banana? Those are good, too. They come with little sprinkles." She looked over her shoulder and pointed toward a small garden. "We always used to eat over there, by the fat man statue."

He couldn't help but smirk at her reference. "Fat man statue?"

"He's supposed to be a famous priest, but I forget which one." Yuna gave the bags of sweet crackers a light shake.

Tidus begrudgingly gave in to her attempt to cheer him and took a bag from her hand. Opening it, he popped a few sweet crackers into his mouth.

Yuna watched him expectantly.

He shrugged. "Not bad."

She took his bag and shook it as she peered into it. "You didn't even look for the ring."

"Why would anyone put a ring in a bag of little crackers? Someone might choke on it."

"Well, if they eat as fast as you do, maybe," she cheerfully answered without skipping a beat.

He frowned slightly. "You know, your jokes are getting just as bad as Kimahri's."

"It's usually made out of a pretty shell." She continued to shake the bag and poke through the contents with a finger until she caught sight of something other than a cracker. Pinching it, she pulled it out, but then pouted slightly recognizing what it was. "Looks like you got a fortune, instead."

He took it from her, along with another pinch of crackers, and read it aloud. "'Wherever you go, there you are.'" He snorted in amusement. "Wonder how long it took them to come up with that?"

"It means you're to enjoy the present, instead of worrying about the future or past." Yuna opened her bag and sifted through it, but came up with another childlike pout, … and another fortune. "Only some of the bags have the rings. I guess that's what made it feel special to get one - that and the fact that it was a day out with my father." Disappointed, she dropped it back into the bag and snagged a few crackers instead. "Oh well. At least the crackers are good, right?" She smiled at him.

"They're very good." He took his bag of crackers back from her and started walking with her toward the fat man statue, when cries of, "Lady Yuna! Lady Yuna!" drew their attention to a cluster of young people approaching with paper scraps and pens.

"May we have your autograph?" the oldest girl among them asked.

"Eh?" She glanced to Tidus. He shrugged his indifference on the matter, so she passed her crackers to him and began accepting paper scraps to sign. "All right. One at a time, please."

"Well, this is different," he commented as he munched some more crackers. "I was usually asked to sign Abes blitzballs and T-shirts when I went out and about, but now you're the one getting all the attention."

"It's because I started singing at the same time I started sphere hunting. I guess I couldn't make up my mind what I wanted to do with myself instead of being a summoner. Does it bother you?"

"No, of course not. I'm glad you found something else you enjoy doing."

"Lady Yuna, when are you going to do another concert?" one of the children asked.

"Oh, um, I've been busy recently with other things." Yuna suddenly lifted her chin to look at the child, then straightened and faced Tidus. "A concert! We should do a concert for the opening ceremony of the library!"

"A concert? In Zanarkand?" He munched another handful of sweet crackers.

"Why not? We did one over the Thunder Plains."

"Seriously?" He blinked in surprise at this news. "You're supposed to electrify your audience, not _electrocute_ them."

"I'll get in contact with Tobli right away when we return to the ship." She clasped her hands together in excitement.

Tidus chuckled at her enthusiasm and strolled away to the little booths behind them while he waited for her to finish the autographs. The booths had a variety of wares for sale, everything from clothing to swords.

"Is he your guitarist?" one of the girls waiting for Yuna's autograph asked.

Yuna looked over her shoulder at Tidus as he lulled over a few items on sale and listened to the music of a man playing a stringed instrument under a small, sheltered alcove. "He's my guardian," she answered with a warm smile.

"Doesn't look like he's guarding you very well," one of the boys skeptically announced.

"Oh, but he is. He's guarding my crackers while I sign your notes."

The girls in the group giggled. "You have a really cute guardian," one bashfully told her.

"He thinks so, too," Yuna whispered to the girl, giving her a playful wink and holding her finger to her lips to keep it a secret. They giggled some more.

Tidus ambled back to her side and dug into her handbag. "Need some gil," was the only explanation he offered. As he counted change, however, he became aware of the stares and hushed giggles focused on him. He took note of the smug expression Yuna wore, and his eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion. But then he found enough coins to cover his expense and walked away again.

"He's also the new captain of the Besaid Aurochs," Yuna whispered to them. "Be sure to go to some of his games if you happen to be in Luca."

The boys in the group turned in unison to regard Tidus with a mixture of doubt and curiosity.

"But the Besaid Aurochs are one of the worst teams in the league," one of the boys complained.

"Well, that was then, this is now. He's going to help them win. He has this really amazing trick shot called ..." She had to think for a moment to remember the proper name for it. "The Sublimely Magnificent Jecht Shot Mark III!" Giggling at the memory of the over-the-top title, Yuna finished signing everyone's notes. Then, she waved good-bye and jogged toward the fat man statue where Tidus was waiting. "I'm sorry about that."

"So, what were you telling those little urchins about me? It not nice to talk about me behind my back, you know."

"I told them you were guarding my crackers and gave your upcoming games a little publicity. What did you buy?" She changed the subject and sat down on the colorful, stone bench beside him.

He flashed her a look of guilt and showed her that both bags of crackers were now empty. "Another bag of crackers." He revealed a third bag in his other hand.

Yuna laughed and accepted the new bag. "Some cracker guard you are."

"Oh, and ... this." He deposited a shell ring into her hand, pleased with himself for managing to pick a bag that had one.

Yuna's eyes widened with delight as she slipped it onto her finger. "You found one!" It was mostly white with a touch of coral, purple, pink, and brown streaks through the carved, palm design. "Does this mean we belong to each other now?" she jokingly asked, showing it off as if it were a diamond.

He lowered his gaze somewhat. "Yuna, ... I've always belonged to you. I wouldn't even be here if they hadn't made me to be with you."

Surprised by his confession, Yuna looked from her ring to her guardian. At first, she was touched, but then she realized there was a double-edged truth to his statement. He _had_ been made for her. He had been created for the sole purpose of helping her defeat Yu Yevon. And that meant ... "They gave you no choice in the matter, ... did they."

He shook his head at her misunderstanding. "Regardless of their intentions, it was my choice to come back."

So many words came to mind that she wanted to say to him, and yet _his_ words left her completely speechless. Reaching out, she slipped her arms around his neck and held him close for a long moment. She had come out here to reassure him of his place in this world, and yet, somehow, he always ended up reassuring her, instead.

"You're going to crush your crackers doing that, you know."

Yuna pulled away at his warning, but then laughed at his aptitude for the insignificant during a significant moment. "Well, if you hadn't eaten the others ..."

"I got hungry waiting." He stood and offered a hand. "Come on. Show me more of this crazy place before we have to head back to that stuffy meeting."

"Okay." Grinning, Yuna hopped up from the bench and pulled him along. Tidus, however, didn't budge, and her own momentum swung her off-balance back into his arms. His stubborn trick made her laugh again, but when he turned her around after catching her, she quieted meeting his deep, blue eyes. They closed as he leaned forward, and his lips brushed hers ever so softly before opening for a more passionate endeavor. Waves of warmth flowed through her entire body from mere contact with him. She could see him, hear him, touch him, ... taste him. He was real. How dare they say otherwise and make him doubt himself. She whimpered slightly, not wanting the kiss to end as he pulled away. They had such precious, little time alone together. Reaching a hand to his neck and sifting the ends of his fine, sun-streaked hair through her fingers, she stood on her tip-toes to see if she could steal another kiss like the first, when not-so-distant giggles caught her attention. They both turned toward the source and saw that the little cluster of autograph seekers still stood nearby.

"Does this look like a carnival kissing booth? What are you standing in line for? Go away!" Tidus gestured for them to shoo, but that only made them giggle more. Looking back to Yuna, he shrugged with a sigh. "Well, … guess it's a good thing I didn't reach for your butt."

Yuna gasped, blushed, and gave him a small push for being so blunt. Tidus laughed, … but she loved the sound of his laugh. It was even more contagious than his smile.

"What! I didn't!" he protested his innocence.

Shaking her head in amused embarrassment, she took his hand again. "Come on, you. Before you get us into any more trouble."

Tidus was still chuckling to himself as they passed the snickering children. Finishing off the last of the sweet crackers, they chucked the empty wrappers into the trash bin. Then, they strolled together under the small trees that lined the path leading further away from the temple.

Yuna spent the rest of the day showing Tidus how to travel within Bevelle, using the lifts to navigate the canals leading to different levels within the city. She took him to the shopping district and the manor home district, explaining to him which parts of the city had been rebuilt in the wake of Sin's attacks. Time slipped away, until she realized the sun was beginning to lower over the horizon. It was time to face the music again about why they had come here.

When they finally made their way back to the temple and returned to the conference room, no one was there and the crate of spheres was gone. "Could you tell us where Praetor Baralai is, please?" she asked of a passing priest.

"The meeting has adjourned, Lady Yuna. He is probably in his study. Do you still need to speak with him?"

"Yes, please."

"This way." The priest led her down a long, curved corridor and stopped by a door to knock.

"Enter." The call came from within.

The priest pushed open the doors and bowed before the praetor. "Lady Yuna and her escort to see you, sir."

Baralai nodded his consent and waited patiently as the priest backed away. Yuna and Tidus entered his study. Three New Yevon staff members in the room with him looked up with blank expressions. "Excuse us, please." Baralai dismissed them as he removed the green outer coat of his temple attire and draped it over the back of the chair at his desk. He looked more relaxed this way, in his cream-colored, linen shirt and pants, but he didn't feel it.

"We didn't mean to abandon the meeting." Yuna began her apology. "We just needed some space for a short time. Forgive us." She folded her hands in front of her gown and bowed at the waist, waiting to hear from their host.

Tidus hesitantly copied her formal, apologetic bow.

))((

Baralai's dark brown eyes bore into the skull of the sun-bleached, golden head beside Yuna's mouse-brown, shaggy cut. Then, he wordlessly turned his back to both of them to make himself a drink at the small bar in the back of the room.


	4. Chapter 4: Friend or Foe

Chapter 4: Friend or Foe

Baralai calmly finished his drink without inviting the errant representatives of Besaid to join him. Then, he set down the glass and gently tightened the yellow belt at the waist of his folded, white over-shirt. "You left without signing guards for a post at the sphere vaults."

Yuna straightened from her bowed position. "I'll sign it now."

Tidus noticed her movement and followed her cue to straighten, but as he lifted his chin, his eyes met the dark, smoldering glare of the quiet praetor.

Baralai lifted a log book filled with official ribbons holding the signatures of all the parties in attendance at the Bevelle council, except one. "We will have to schedule another meeting, since this one was interrupted," he added as he approached and offered it to her, along with a pen. "The treaty for construction of a sphere library over Zanarkand has not been signed, either. There was ... indecision on whether to carry on without you present, or not."

"I'm so sorry," she answered, accepting her scolding without argument. Ashamed that her quick exit and latent return had caused problems for the others, she moved to sit down in a chair to read the contract. "Tidus has never been to Bevelle before except to crawl around in the dungeons. I was worried he'd get lost." It was a weak excuse for skirting her duties, but it was an honest one.

Baralai's gaze remained on Tidus, careful to keep his distance. "Yes, well, that is the other matter that brought negotiations to a screeching halt. It's an amazing coincidence that your guardian happens to be a spirit from Zanarkand that looks like Shuyin, don't you think?"

Yuna paused in her reading, but did not look up. "He's not Shuyin."

"Shuyin is ..." Tidus broke his silence, but once he had opened his mouth, he almost couldn't bring himself to say what he intended. "He's ... my brother." It was only half of the truth, but it sounded better than the whole truth right now.

Baralai's eyes narrowed slightly with skepticism. "Brother?"

Tidus made himself nod in reluctant confirmation. "Yeah."

"And do you walk Spira with the same desire for vengeance that he did?"

"I don't want vengeance on anything." He stepped toward Baralai, but the praetor cautiously stepped back. Tidus's brows drew together in pained frustration. The ruined meeting meant nothing to him, but he so badly wanted to be believed on this matter. "I just want to be with Yuna."

Baralai touched his wide headband as if soothing a headache. "Lady Yuna, forgive me if this sounds rude, but ... don't you find it disturbing that dead men seem to have a fascination for you? First Maester Seymour, and now Shuyin's _brother_ ..."

Yuna looked up regarding him with a hurt expression. "Tidus is not dead."

"Yet coming from a thousand year-old illusion, he can't really be alive, can he?" The praetor calmly tried to reason with her and glanced at Tidus. "Just like with fiends, the magic holding him together makes him look real; but no matter how real he looks, he's still a spirit. Restless spirits _become_ fiends. The only difference is that spirits still have their human forms, and in some ways that makes them more dangerous than the monsters they will eventually turn into. You know this because you've fought them - you fought_ him_. He killed an entire squadron of elite Crusaders by having them massacre _each other_. He made my friend try to kill me and took over my body and mind so I was nothing but a puppet! Then, he tried to destroy all of Spira!"

Yuna stood, angrily clenching the pen in her hand. "That was Shuyin!"

Baralai realized he was letting his anxiety over Tidus's presence make him more temperamental than normal, so he reminded himself to calm down. "How can you expect me to welcome an unsent spirit into the council? I find myself wondering if he should even be allowed to walk freely within the city. Summoners and priests … it's our responsibility to send the reluctant spirits of the dead to the Farplane where they belong."

"No one's going to be sending him; he's not dead," she defiantly repeated. "He won't hurt anyone because he won't change."

"An unsent spirit can't help but become a fiend." The soft-spoken young man turned away from them and walked to his desk, breathed deeply, then sighed. "I don't want him on your guard roster." He paused. "I don't care who else you sign for duty at the temple, ... but, please, … not him."

Upset that Tidus had to hear that conversation, Yuna looked to him for input, but he only pressed his lips together. He was holding his tongue to prevent himself from saying something he would regret. She looked back at the contract in her hand, then set it on the desk, and wrote out the names of the people she recommended for guard duty. When she finished with that, she scrawled her name across the red ribbon marked for Besaid. "We are sorry to have disturbed your peace of mind. We can talk more about this at the next meeting."

She bowed to the young praetor's back and headed for the door, but then paused. Though she understood the reason for his discomfort, what he said earlier had hurt her. She had to set one thing straight. "By the way, let's not forget, I did have at least one other engagement with a man from New Yevon that was very much alive. It would appear that the name Yevon has more to do with my cursed engagements than restless spirits."

Baralai faced her with a soft, unmasked expression of apology. "Yuna … I assure you, that is one engagement I will never forget. Forgive me if my concern over this situation makes it sound as if I didn't …" He looked to Tidus and decided it was best not to finish that statement. "I hope you know that I have always had your best interest at heart."

Still hurt, Yuna said nothing more as she left the room.

Tidus met Baralai's dark gaze and wondered what engagement they were talking about, but he dare not ask about it now. Falling back into his role as guardian, he turned and silently followed the former summoner her back to the airship.

Baralai picked up the signed document and looked at the list of guards from Besaid under Yuna's signature. "Tidus," he read aloud the last name and dropped the contract on his desk in disgust.

))((

"How'd it go?" Rikku eagerly asked as Yuna and Tidus both came into the cabin and climbed the stairs to the loft. She had been on her bed reading a comic for a few hours.

"It went," Tidus grumbled. He went straight to the futon and shoved his pile of blankets aside to sit down.

"Uh-oh. I know that tone." Rikku rolled onto her stomach. "That tone means something didn't go well."

"Baralai and Nooj recognized him as Shuyin as soon as we walked in the door." Yuna slowly ascended the stairs to the loft and stopped at the end of Rikku's bed. "We had to explain some of the reason behind his connection to Zanarkand, too. Kimahri stood by him, but the rest don't seem to want him on the project now."

"You can't really blame them, you know. After everything that's happened ..." Paine had been sitting cross-legged on her bed in meditation after a training session with her samurai sphere, but she was alert to the conversation around her now.

"I know." Yuna sat down on her own bed in a huff. "I just wish they'd give him a chance before jumping to conclusions. We really need his input on this. Kimahri's going to be in charge of actually building it, but he wants good blue-prints of an actual Zanarkand building."

"Does such a thing still exist?" Paine asked.

"Probably not. They're going to see what they can do to reconstruct something from the spheres, but Kimahri wants Tidus to try to remember some interiors."

Tidus pulled a golden plate from his pocket and touched the sphere that changed his dark knight armor back to his more comfortable Besaid shorts and tank. When he looked up, he saw that all three women were looking at him with unspoken concern. "I didn't want to attend their stuffy meeting anyway, so I'm okay with whatever they want to think of me." He shrugged and pulled his feet underneath himself to sit cross-legged on the futon.

Yuna knew that wasn't true, or he wouldn't have left the meeting. "We need your help," she repeated.

"I can't make any promises about my memories of Zanarkand. It's full of holes, remember?"

Paine rose from her bed and crossed the floor to stand before him. "If you want to try and win them over, talk to Gippal."

"Gippal's not crazy about him being there, either." Yuna removed her garment grid from her handbag and touched a dress sphere to change from her formal gown to her gunner shorts.

"But Gippal already met him at Djose, and they hit it off pretty well." Paine sat down on the arm of the futon frame, extending one leg and tucking the other beneath her.

Yuna sighed. "Yes, but I think finding out he was from Zanarkand weirded him out a little."

Rikku put down the comic she was reading and crossed her airborne ankles behind her, dangling her arms down the side of her bed as she spoke to Tidus. "Just talk to him and explain things. If anyone could be won back over on your level, it's Gippal."

"I don't care about winning them over. I'll help Kimahri if he needs me, but other than that, I'd just rather play ball."

Yuna felt badly for asking him to attend the conference with her now. "Well, you don't have to go next meeting, then."

Tidus knew exactly what she was thinking and sighed. Then, a slow smile drew across his lips. "Can I still meet you afterwards for some sweet crackers at the fat man statue?"

Rikku looked to Yuna and wrinkled her nose. "Fat man statue?"

Yuna smiled at Tidus. "I'd like that."

"Want us to talk to Gippal for you, anyway?" Paine asked.

Yuna nodded. "If you think it will help."

"We'll do what we can."

Tidus stood and gathered his blankets in his arms, but then realized the ones in the crates had been left in Bevelle. "Well, that's one blanket less between my back and the bottom of the engine room floor tonight."

"Hold it right there, you." Yuna stood and took the blankets from him to deposit them back on the futon. "You're sleeping here tonight." She hesitantly faced her friends. "If that's okay with everyone else, of course."

"Fine with me." Paine shrugged. "I was wondering how long he'd be able to stand that engine room."

"Surriffic! It will be like having a big slumber party to have someone new up here!" Rikku absently bumped her heels together and grinned in a teasing manner so that her dimples showed. "We can share gossip, fix your hair, and play practical jokes on you in your sleep."

Tidus was horrified for a split second. "Okay, that's it. I'm going back to the engine room." He side-stepped around Paine and Yuna to make his escape.

Yuna caught his shirt before he could get far. "Nope. You're staying right here." She reached underneath the futon's frame and started to pull it away from the wall.

Paine bumped Tidus out of her way and pushed the tea table aside. Then, she grabbed the other side of the futon and gave it a jerk. The rest of the frame dropped into place without a hitch.

"Do we get to put more sleep spells on Brother so he won't notice?" Rikku asked.

"The thought does have its appeal." Paine helped Yuna fold the blankets, leaving one for him to sleep with. "Too bad we can't knock him out during the daytime with some, as well." She accepted the rest to go put them away.

Tidus watched Paine with interest for a moment then followed her. "When he was possessed by Shuyin, Nooj shot you, too, ... didn't he?" He held the lid of the chest open for her.

Paine paused at the unexpected question and pressed the blankets into the chest. "Yes."

"Then, ... how come you don't hate me like they do? You didn't even freak when you first met me."

Paine was quiet for a moment as she asked herself the same question. "Maybe it's because I was with Yuna the whole time she was searching for you. Or, maybe it's because you remind me of a time when things were more simple."

He knew the normally quiet woman was sincere in her response, but she seemed sad about it somehow. So, he snorted in amusement to make up for prying. "You're saying I'm simple? Is that a compliment or an insult?"

"That depends on whether I find you annoying at the moment, or not." She stood and returned to her bed.

Tidus closed the lid of the chest, just as Brother came into cabin and sat down at the bar. "Barkeep, I would like anything tall and cold." He slapped a hand on the counter. "It is for celebration! The hover bike is nearly finished."

"Coming riiiight up." The hypello lifted himself from his stool and slowly made his way to the drinks.

"Brother?" Yuna moved to the rail and leaned over it. "I've signed everyone for guard duty in the temples where they will be keeping all the spheres until the library is built. Nooj doesn't trust Baralai to be sole keeper of the spheres. Can you please pass word to Cid and Buddy? Shinra's a little young, so he's the only one I didn't volunteer."

Brother accepted a perspiring glass from the hypello and left the bar to head up to the loft. "I will let them know as soon as I go back to the bridge. How was the meeting?"

Yuna repeated the highlights and the low points for everyone, this time in more detail.

Brother frowned and rubbed his chin considering the tension concerning Tidus. "You want I should talk to Gippal for you? That's a shame they don't want his help. I mean, sure Tidus is nothing but illusion, but he has knowledge of Zanarkand."

Tidus's expression went flat at Brother's biased opinion of him.

Rikku clamored off of her bed to face off against her brother. "Stop saying things like that! Could you do this to an illusion?" She gave Tidus's shoulders a jarring shake to demonstrate he was real. "Or this?" She gave his arm a pinch.

"A-tch!" Tidus gave her a mild frown of complaint and returned the gesture.

"Ouch! Don't do that. I'm trying to help you." Rikku frowned right back at him.

"By pushing and pinching me?"

"You'd rather I tickle you?"

"I'm not ticklish."

"Hmpf. " She doubted that and dug her fingers into his ribs.

An involuntary chuckle escaped, but Tidus pushed her hands away and moved to the other side of Yuna, using her as a shield between himself and the hyper Al Bhed girl. "Man, you've got some stiletto fingers." He winced and rubbed his side.

Having won that argument, Rikku turned her confident attention back to her brother. "Besides, if he's nothing but an illusion, how come you make him sleep in the engine room instead of up here?"

Brother blinked at the unfolded futon in shock and marched toward Tidus. "Who told you that you could sleep up here?"

Tidus grabbed Yuna's arms and pulled her between himself and Brother. "Now's a good time to have that talk with him." He was happy to let her to do the explaining, since it was her idea. Brother had a habit of listening to her instead of him, anyway.

Yuna gave a light laugh of embarrassment being put on the spot like that. "Well, um, his back is hurting him because it's been two weeks in the engine room, see?"

"He is in the engine room because I know what he thinks!" Brother tapped his own mostly-bald head.

Tidus folded his arms across his chest. "Well, if you know what I'm thinking, then you must be thinking it, too."

Brother leaned over Yuna's shoulder, nose-to-nose with Tidus. "I do not think what you think. I would never think such things about Yuna."

"What things?" Tidus challenged, enjoying watching Brother's face become more red with each passing moment.

"Things you should not be thinking!" He shook his fist at him.

"Brother, I appreciate your concern," Yuna interrupted, "but I trust Tidus."

"Hear that?" Tidus grinned victoriously at him from behind her. "She _trusts_ me."

"Two years ago, I trusted him with my life when we traveled together. We all did. I want him to travel with us like that again - as one of us - a member of the crew. Do you understand?" Yuna asked of Brother, trying to break it to him gently.

"That does it! I hereby declare Tidus an official member of the Gullwings!" Rikku happily announced. "That means he gets to have his own space on the ship." She dared her brother to challenge her.

"My own space." Tidus gave Rikku an appreciative pat on the back for her support.

Brother was aghast. "You can't make him official! I am the captain! That's my job! You are nobody but a pest!"

"Well, we could always just hurt him really bad, if he does anything stupid." Paine rose to her feet once more, removed the long-sleeved waist coat over her tank, and approached Tidus with as if sizing him up.

Tidus eyed the taller warrior-woman's gesture with flat tolerance, … but then took a discreet step backwards as she folded her slender, but well-sculpted, arms at her chest. Paine was every bit as soft and feminine-looking as her smaller friends, but he'd seen her fight before during their trek through the Thunder Plains on their way to Guadosalam. And she had been a ruthless contender in their blitz games on the beach.

Brother considered Paine's ability to kick high and hard. "Fine! I give you permission to sleep on this deck," he begrudgingly agreed. "But if you don't stay in your space, Paine has orders to punt you out of here like blitzball!" Though he still wasn't happy about it, he left his decree at that and headed back down to the bar.

"Yahoo!" Rikku jumped on her bed and did a little dance. "You're one of us now!"

Yuna wagged a finger at Tidus in mock scolding. "Hear that, young man? You're not to step one foot away from that futon for any reason - _ever_." She laughed at the quirked brow she received from him in response and hooked her arms around his neck. "That means no fading away again. Captain's orders."

"Knowing Brother, he'll insist on chaining me to the frame to be sure I can't leave it."

"Why use chain when there's still plenty of duct tape?" Paine adjusted the long, flowing hakama and tank from her samurai sphere.

Tidus laughed uneasily. "Hey, you were kidding about that hurting thing, right?"

"If that's what you want to believe." With a thin smile, Paine gave his cheek a light pat and returned to her bed to retrieve her waist jacket.


	5. Chapter 5: Double Edged Sword of Fame

Chapter 5: Double-Edged Sword of Fame

Wakka paced nervously outside of the locker rooms at the Luca stadium. "Where is he? He's going to be late."

"Calm down, Wakka. You're acting more nervous about Tidus making it to the game on time than you did when you were waiting for your son to be born." Lulu bounced the cooing baby in her arms as his tiny hand reached to grab and pat her face.

"They can't start the game without him. If he's too late, then the Aurochs might have to forfeit, ya?"

"Well, wearing a hole in the carpet won't make him arrive any sooner. I say we go ahead and take our seats. He'll get here when he gets here."

Wakka sighed in defeat. "Okay." He headed up the stairs with his wife following behind him when, at the top landing from the locker rooms, he spotted a crowd of children clustered around a familiar golden-blond head. Tidus was cheerfully signing blitzballs and paper scraps, as well as demonstrating a few showy tricks like spinning the blitzball around his hand and torso. Wakka's jaw hung open in disbelief. "What the heck are you doing?" He stormed toward him. "You're supposed to be in the locker room getting ready to go out in that sphere pool! They're getting ready to turn on the water canons any minute now!"

"Oh, hey, Wakka." Tidus flashed his easy-going grin. "Like my new threads?" He paused between signings to spread his arms wide and turn around, showing off his new team uniform - baggy yellow chaps over washed out navy pants, topped by a waist-wide belt with shoulder straps in place of a shirt, complete with sandals. "I'm going to raise a complaint about the sandals, though. They'll never hold up to the Jecht shot. I might as well play barefoot."

Wakka nearly choked on his next words. Tidus finally looked the part of an official Aurochs team member, rather than a temporary contract. And except for his sun-streaked hair, he reminded him of his long-lost, little brother, Chappu. Once that moment had passed, Wakka remembered why he was angry. "Get into that locker room before I pound you into a clam!"

"All right! All right! Jeeze, if I'd known you were going to pop an artery over a few autographs, I would have never named you coach." He gave the large man a teasing glance. "Last one, okay? We gotta build us a fan base all over again." Tidus turned to a small boy who was bouncing up and down trying to stretch his blitzball over the head of a taller boy in front of him. "What's your name, kid?" he asked, as he accepted the offered item.

"Tura," the small boy answered, as he was jostled to the front.

"Okay, Tura, I want to see you going crazy up there when I make a goal. I want to look up in the stands and see you bouncing off the walls waving back at me. Got it?"

"That's quite enough! Give the ball back to him this instant."

Tidus finished his wild signature and looked up to see who was scolding him this time. It certainly wasn't Wakka. It was a stern-faced woman that strongly resembled the boy in front of him. "Just signing his blitzball, ma'am."

She reached over the boy's head and snatched the ball from Tidus, giving him a wary expression. "I don't know why in the world they're even letting someone like you play. Stay away from my son. And stay away from these other children, too."

Tidus's brows knit together in confusion. "Excuse me?"

"I know what you are. And I'm surprised someone hasn't done something about it by now."

Wakka was just as confused about this woman's unfounded hostility as Tidus was. "What are you talking about? You got a problem with our new captain, lady? My boy here is the finest blitz player you'll ever see. He may deserve to be skinned alive for being late to his first game, but he was just doing something nice for your kid, ya?"

The woman snorted cynically and shielded her child away from them. "Then he'd have to be alive first, wouldn't he." She took her child's hand and hurried toward the stadium's main entrance. In spite of his mother's reproach, Tura tucked his blitzball under his arm, looked over his shoulder, and grinned at Tidus in gratitude for the signature.

Tidus blinked at the small faces that still surrounded him. "How did she know?" Thrusting his arms in front of himself, he checked to make sure that he wasn't beginning to fade. His skin was still corporeal, so he looked to Wakka in bewilderment. "How did she know?" he repeated, slightly more desperate for an answer.

_He'd have to be alive first_ ... Stunned by the woman's declaration, Wakka shook his head and swept his hands as if to clear the air. "Okay, you know what? Shake it off, man. Nothing's happening to you. She's just one strange woman among an entire stadium of people waiting to see you play. Signing that kid's ball made his day. You saw that smile on his face, ya?" He waved to the children to indicate they had to leave, and then pushed Tidus back toward the locker rooms by guiding his shoulders from behind.

Lulu waited at the stairs where they were when Wakka first spotted Tidus doing the impromptu autograph session. "It's about time you got here. That uniform suits you." She shifted the baby to her shoulder as they passed.

Wakka paused by her side and scratched the side of his nose as he lowered his voice. "Hey, uh, have you heard of anyone passing rumors around about him being ... you know, ... not real or anything?"

Lulu's brows rose in mild surprise at the unexpected question. "I've heard a few people talking about him having played here two years ago, but I haven't heard anything like that. I don't see how anyone but us would know." Lulu's skirt shuffled with graceful movement as she moved to stand in front of Tidus. "You look worried. You've never looked worried before a game."

"How could some strange woman that doesn't even know me, know about me like that?"

"It is odd." Lulu paused in thought for a moment. "Don't try to figure it out right now, though, or your game might suffer from your distraction. I'm going on up. Make us proud." She smiled and walked away.

"I'll be up in a minute," Wakka told her as he opened the locker room door and herded Tidus inside. The rest of the Besaid Aurochs gathered around them as they entered. "All right, listen up. He gave me a few gray hairs about it, but I found your captain. Now, I want to see you guys go out there and bring home a win!"

Tidus looked down at his hands again with concern as the team huddled around him.

"Uh, Tidus?" Keepa prompted him out of his daze with an elbow nudge.

"Oh, right." He put his hand over theirs and tried to shake off the strange experience as Lulu and Wakka recommended. "What do we want?" he called out.

"Victory!" they shouted.

He began to fill with enthusiasm. "How are we going to get it?"

"Play hard!"

"Then what time is it?" he shouted.

"Time for the Besaid Aurochs to kick some ass!" they all shouted together in unison.

"Wha- uh?" Wakka couldn't believe his ears. "You changed my pre-game cheer?"

"Thought that one up myself." Tidus grinned, slapped his friend in the gut, and jogged out of the room with his teammates, amid motivated hoots and howls, to ascend to the sphere pool.

"You little brat, you just cursed us! Don't you know it's bad luck to change a pre-game ritual?" Wakka shook his fist at Tidus's back as he left through the door in the floor of the arena. "Spoiled Zanarkand runt ..." Wakka gave up trying to throw out advice and headed in the opposite direction to the stadium's main entrance.

As he jogged up the steps between the seating sections, he spotted Rikku waving both arms wildly above the crowd. No sooner had she drawn his attention to where they were seated, than the opening music of the games began, and the water canons blasted criss-crossing arcs within the bubble of magic that set the perimeters of the sphere pool. The gravitational support arm that sustained the magical boundaries swept a full rotation over the entire arena, and the levitating score board overhead blinked to reset the start of a new game. The announcers welcomed visitors to the city of Luca and began spouting game statistics of the past several years over the loud speakers. Food and balloon vendors wandered the wide aisles, and the blitzball team players ran out to wave at their fans from the bottom of the large bowl-shaped floor of the stadium. While the demi-globe of water continued to fill, the athletes jogged around the catwalk at the base, and Wakka hurried to his seat.

"There they are!" Rikku shouted and pointed to the Aurochs as they came around to where she and her friends were seated. "Go Aurochs! Woo hoo!" she blasted in Wakka's ear as he squeezed past her.

"Ah! Tch!" He rubbed his ear with a wince, but then smiled at Yuna as he claimed the seat between her and Lulu. Turning to face the game, he cheered for his team. "All right, Aurochs! Look sharp! Look sharp!" he shouted and clapped.

"Was he nervous?" Yuna asked as loudly as her naturally soft voice would allow her. Still, she could barely hear herself.

"Nah, he'll do fine!" Wakka yelled in return, chuckling now at how optimistic Tidus had been heading out of the locker room.

Yuna beamed with excitement and waved at Tidus as he came around the loop leading his team. Putting her fingers to her lips, she let out the loudest, shrillest whistle she could produce.

))((

Above the screams, music, and roster of player names blasting through the arena, somehow he heard it. Tidus lifted his eyes to where she stood. All of his friends were there, cheering for him in their own special way. It was the first time in two years he had been able to do this. It felt like the first time in several lifetimes since he was able to take back what he had lost the night that Zanarkand was destroyed by Sin. Tidus pushed back the swelling emotion, grinned from ear-to-ear, and waved back. He was determined to win this first game for them.

When his run around the stadium ended, the music changed, and the players headed down into a tunnel opposite the locker room door in the bottom of the bowl. The tunnel echoed with the shuffle of feet and dripping water, and it curved up below the bottom of the pool. The noise of the crowd above sounded like thunder down here where the water amplified the sound waves. Tidus cleared his mind of everything but his goal. As he approached the door glowing with teleportation glyphs, he drew a steady, deep breath. The result of years of serious training, a blitz player's lung capacity had been the envy of all other athletes in Zanarkand. He checked his arm guard one more time, then shoved his shoulder against the door, punching straight through it. Instantly surrounded by cool, crystal-clear water, his eyes took a moment to adjust to the blurred vision. He instinctively held his breath and swam with the ease of a water snake to kneel on his platform position in the pool. Then, he turned to hand signal his teammates which strategy to implement first. Within seconds, the buzzer went off, the ball was jetted into play, and Tidus broke into a blur of swirling bubbles and action.

))((

"Alright! You did it! You won!" Wakka snagged Tidus by the neck as soon as he stepped through the door from the sphere pool when the games were over. He gave the young man's wet head a hard scrub and released him before giving him a proud pat on the back. "I knew you could do it, ya?"

"You said I cursed the team," Tidus reminded him. He was exhausted, but happy with their hard-earned victory.

Yuna ran into his arms to give him a congratulatory kiss, in spite of the fact that he was soaking wet from head to toe. She was getting used to his constantly water-logged condition from all the practicing at the beach. She lifted the small medallion that hung over his silver necklace and grinned proudly at it. "We'll hang it on the wall of the loft first thing when we get back."

"Better leave lots of space for more because this is just the first one," he boasted as he pushed open the locker room door and entered. Yuna, Wakka, and the rest of the Besaid Aurochs filed in behind him, each one congratulating the others.

"We're going to the cafe to celebrate, so hurry and change, okay? Everyone else has gone ahead of us and is saving us some seats," Yuna told him.

He went to his locker and popped it open with his fist in a rather punctual manner. "Did you see the set-up between Datto and Botta when Vuroja started to pass? They nailed him so hard I think he spun around three times!"

"Excuse me?" A call from the cracked door of the locker room interrupted him as a serious looking woman with large green eyes and a very pressed suit poked her head through. "I'm Sunsa from the Luca Com Sphere Station. I was wondering if I could have a quick interview with the Besaid Aurochs team captain?"

Tidus looked to Yuna, who smiled and bowed out of the way to let him have his turn in the spotlight. "Okay, sure," he agreed, reaching for a towel from his locker.

"Where's Shelinda?" Yuna asked Sunsa.

"Lady Yuna? Oh, well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised to see you here. Shelinda is interviewing the losers. After all, we can't all have the winners." She chuckled at her own joke, patted her perfectly curled auburn hair, and chose her position to begin recording.

"Okay, we're on in three, ... two, ... " Her recorder flashed her _one_ index finger, then cued her to begin.

"Hello, Luca! Sunsa here with a live report from the blitzball stadium locker rooms. The Besaid Aurochs have just won their first league game after suffering miserable, record-breaking losses for the past two years!"

"Oi," Tridus frowned at her bringing that up.

"Responsible in part for this victory is their new team captain, who - as I understand it - served as a stand-in contract player two years ago when they won their first tournament in _ten_ years. Could this mean another championship cup for the Aurochs?" She pointed the microphone at him.

"You bet!" He grinned and clasped his hand over hers holding the mic away from his nose at more preferable angle. "Datto and Botta played excellent offense. Keepa was right on the ball. Jassu and Letty - everyone stuck to their game today and played really well. If they keep working together and giving it all they got, we'll be bringing that cup home to Besaid!" He looked over his shoulder and gave a short applaud for his team mates who hooted with him. "The Kilika Beasts played well today, too - a good challenge for us to get back into the games. But I wanna see more fans from Besaid out there in the stands next time, okay?" He spoke emphatically and directly to the sphere recorder. "Besaid's going to make it to the finals, we're not going to invite you to our party afterward if we don't see you out there supporting us!"

Yuna smiled and laughed lightly behind clasped hands as he handled the interview with the energy and ease of a seasoned professional. She couldn't help but wonder if this was how it used to be for him - back in his Zanarkand.

"Tidus, can you tell us what you were doing during your two-year break from blitzball, and do you think taking that long of a hiatus from the sport in any way affected how you played today? It certainly didn't seem to effect that trick shot that you pulled off three times today."

Yuna was worried for a moment when the initial answer failed him. He couldn't tell everyone he had been in the Farplane for two years. Without knowing him, the general public might handle the news of his origins the same way Baralai had.

"Well, I learned that trick shot from my old man, so I've been working on that non-stop since I was about five," he smoothly answered from the other end of the question.

"What's your secret to being able to master something like that?"

"Lots of falls." He flashed Sunsa his contagious grin. It worked. The reporter grinned back.

"Yeah, on his head." Wakka's comment from the back of the room drew chuckles from the rest of the team.

"So, is learning that shot similar to a gymnast learning a back flip?" she asked.

Apparently, she had been paying more attention to him than the mechanics of the set up. "Um, it _is_ a back flip." Tidus winked at her for stating the obvious.

"Oh, you're right!" The reporter blushed and laughed. "Silly me."

"The only difference is I have to kick a ball." Tidus continued his easy manner of teasing as he dried his face and hair. "The ball is probably what confused you."

Sunsa waved a hand over her flushed face as she laughed again in embarrassment at her moment of dim-wittedness.

Wakka shook his head at Tidus's campy behavior and the way it whittled the professional reporter down to a puppy-eyed school-girl.

Yuna giggled to herself, appreciating his ability to dodge the tricky questions.

"So tell me, Tidus, with all that practicing, how do you find time for a personal life? There's a lot of speculation floating around about what's going on between you and Lady Yuna." Sunsa gestured toward Yuna, caught by surprise at the back of the room, but continued to speak with him. "Looks like she came to see you play today. Are you two very friendly?"

Tidus looked to Yuna and smiled. "Ehh, ... define 'friendly.'"

"Well, there are reports that you were spotted together in Bevelle during the recent conference for the plans to build a new sphere library in the ruins of Zanarkand. And word has it that you're living with her on the Gullwings' airship now. Any plans for marriage or babies in the near future?" She turned the microphone back to him.

Tidus's eyes widened. "_Babies_?"

Yuna gasped, but then covered her mouth to prevent any further utterances of shock from spilling out.

"Ouch." Wakka chuckled at the unexpected interview detour.

The rest of their teammates laughed. Tidus winced and lowered his head, until the assorted comical and congratulatory pats on the back passed on their way to the showers.

"Did you attend the Bevelle conference as her escort, or are you, in fact, a member of the planning team because you're _from_ Zanarkand?" Sunsa persisted, turning the microphone on him again.

Tidus, Yuna, and Wakka all held their collective breath. As Tidus looked up in surprise, Yuna looked to him with rising apprehension. The puppy-eyed school-girl had turned back into a sharp reporter, and this time charm would not substitute for an answer.


	6. Chapter 6: Guardian Cloister of Trials

Chapter 6: Guardian's Cloister of Trials

"Who told you I was from Zanarkand?" Tidus asked, trying to be nonchalant about the invasive question the reporter had just asked him.

"Well, it's all speculation, of course, but my sources say you attended the Bevelle meeting about the library in Zanarkand because you claim to be a former resident of the ancient city, back when it was alive," Sunsa continued with her interview. "Besides that, a couple of Luca Goers have reported that you once claimed to play for a Zanarkand team called the Aces. Can you confirm or deny those rumors?" Sunsa held the microphone under his chin once more.

_Abes _... Tidus crumpled his towel, dying to correct her. Still, he tried to keep smiling and shrug it off. "I don't see what this has to do with blitzball."

"Well, you have to admit it's intriguing, if not impossible. But it does seem rather silly, now that I'm standing right here in front of you. I mean, how could you tackle other players and kick a ball like that if you're unsent? Unless you're a fiend - and you certainly don't _look_ like a fiend." Sunsa laughed as if she were having another school-girl moment. "In fact, with that smile of yours, you might end up as this year's poster boy of _Blitzball Illustrated._"

"Blitzball what? Look, I'm not unsent." He didn't care about anything else he'd said, as long as he could make that perfectly clear. "So, if you don't have any more questions directly related to the game, I have friends waiting for me to finish here." He excused himself with a hesitant, but polite, bow. Turning his back to the sphere recorder, he dug his clean clothes out of his locker and left for the showers.

))((

"Well, you heard it here, live in Luca. This is Sunsa, signing out." She smiled until the green glow within the magical fluid of the sphere faded, then sighed to her recorder. "Well, that was fun. At least he answered some of the questions. Not the mystery exposé I was hoping for, but maybe I'll get my raise anyway."

"Excuse me, Sunsa?" Yuna stopped her. "May I ask who's spreading rumors about Tidus being from Zanarkand?"

"Well, the source was anonymous, which I why I have to say it was speculative. But I will tell you the rumor started in Bevelle when you were seen together on the day of the meeting, and it's slowly trickling down here to Luca. I'm not saying anything that isn't already yesterday's news. You know how word of mouth goes." She paused. "Um, ... I don't suppose you would be willing to give me an exclusive scoop on it?"

"Will you report exactly what I say instead of _speculation_?"

"Certainly, Lady Yuna." Sunsa gestured for the recorder to turn the memory sphere back on.

Yuna ignored the sphere recorder and spoke directly to the reporter. "Okay, then, what I have to say is this. Tidus was my guardian on my journey to defeat Sin. The guardians that traveled with me that day - we became like family. I couldn't bear the thought of losing any _one_ of them." She gave Wakka a warm smile, which he proudly returned. "Tidus took the job as the Aurochs new captain because Wakka asked him to do it, and they needed another player to be able to enter the games. He joined the Gullwings because we wanted him as part of our sphere hunting team. I do care for him very deeply, but neither of us are ready for the kind of responsibilities that the rumors you just mentioned would push upon us. He's ... only just come home. Please, don't rush or distort things for him. He is many things, but he is _not_ unsent."

Sunsa nodded and signaled her recorder to turn off the sphere once more. "Well said, Lady Yuna. I'll do a delay broadcast first thing tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, Sunsa." Yuna watched as the reporter and her recorder left. Then, she chewed her lip in thought and looked to Wakka for his assessment of the situation. He looked discouraged.

"Before the game, a woman out front wouldn't let her kid get close to him because she said she knew what he was - said he wasn't alive, or something to that effect." He scratched the back of his orange head and adjusted the wide blue headband that he wore, then he shifted his weight to lean against the wall. "Kinda freaked him out a little. Didn't set well with me, either."

"Who would do something like this? Who would give out that kind of information on him?" Yuna began to pace.

"Has he made any enemies?"

"Well, he has had difficulties with Brother, but Brother wouldn't do something like this to get back at him."

"She said you were seen together in Bevelle. Got any old boyfriends there that would be jealous?" Wakka wriggled his brows.

Yuna shook her head. "No one that could have known anything about his being from Zanarkand." She stopped in her tracks with sudden realization. "But everyone at the meeting knows about him now." Yuna turned to face the friend who was like a big brother to both her and Tidus. "Kimahri would never betray him, but the others ..."

"Who else was there?"

"Well, ... Tromell used to serve Maester Seymour, and he saw Shuyin possess Tidus for a short time in the Farplane. But he's been nice to us since Maester Seymour was sent and with the guados' return to Guadosalam."

Wakka rubbed his chin. "Maybe he's just pretending to be nice, ya?"

"Then, there's Praetor Baralai." Yuna paced some more. "He doesn't want Tidus on the guard roster for the library project. In fact, he doesn't want him to help on the project at all. He can't accept that Tidus doesn't need to be sent. And , … he has one more reason to dislike him, actually." But Yuna pressed her lips together rather than discussing it.

"Hmm, another possibility."

"Mevyn Nooj was the most outwardly uncomfortable with him looking so much like Shuyin, though. I don't know if he would ever try to get back at Tidus for what Shuyin did to him, but … well, … he does have aggressive tendencies about that sort of thing."

"What about Gippal?"

"Gippal didn't have any problems with him being at the meeting, until he found out about Zanarkand. They're all afraid that he's a reincarnation of Shuyin."

"Well, from what you told us about this neo-genesis business, ... he kinda is."

Yuna frowned and shook her head. "Tidus would never do the things that Shuyin has done. He is his own person."

"But if he's a part of Shuyin's soul, then ... he did. He just doesn't remember any of it." Wakka slipped his hands into the pockets of the dark blue pants that had been a part of his Aurochs uniform. He wore them with a simple white tank now that he was no longer a team player.

She shook her head again refusing to accept that. "He doesn't share the darkness of Shuyin's soul to make those kinds of decisions."

"Yuna, I know Tidus acts like a bean head sometimes, but that doesn't make him all innocent, ya? Remember, he was able to kill his own father."

"Wakka, you are not helping." Yuna angered slightly. "You know he didn't do that out of spite or vengeance, even if he really wanted to in the beginning. He was rescuing his father, not punishing him."

Wakka sighed. "Well, I don't know what to tell you, but it sounds like he's made an enemy somewhere. And if I were him, I wouldn't take it lightly. If people begin to think he's a some kind of unsent fiend, he could find himself in danger. People do strange things when they're afraid of something they don't understand, ya?"

"Then, what should I do about it?" Tidus asked from the doorway to the showers.

Both of them turned at the unexpected sound of his voice.

Yuna's brow rose in apology for the way they had been talking about him, debating what he was capable of doing as if he were some kind of ... "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough." He returned to his locker to get the rest of his belongings and then closed it. "It's okay. You're both kinda right, I guess."

Yuna sighed seeing him so discouraged. She moved to stand before him, rose on her toes, and gave him a kiss as her arms encircled his waist. "We'll worry about it later, okay? Let's go get some drinks at the cafe, and then we can go home to Besaid for dinner. We have some celebrating to do."

Tidus gave her a small smile. "I'm always up for a celebration and food."

))((

That night back in Besaid, the villagers who couldn't go to Luca were able to watch a replay of the Auroch's first win in two years on a new com sphere that Shinra built for them. It was larger than the other he had left there before, and it had a holographic projection feature, so it was like watching the game live and up-close.

"Do I really look that dorky when I throw a pass?" Tidus asked, wincing at having to watch himself in action.

"Yes!" Wakka and Jassu answered with laughs as they piled logs on the bonfire behind them.

"You should see Rikku swim when she plays." Yuna laughed lightly and moved her hand in imitation of Rikku's trademark movement.

"Hey! At least I can hold my breath longer than _someone_ who sucked a whole bunch of water up her nose the first time she played a real game." Rikku cast a small pebble at Yuna's feet.

Tidus gave Yuna a reserved side glance, but it was clear he was holding back a snicker.

"Don't you laugh at me," she warned. "I worked very hard to learn how to hold my breath long enough to play a few rounds."

Rikku giggled at the memory. "She was sneezing all over the place after we pulled her out. And she has this really weird sneeze because she never sneezes just once. She sneezes like ten times, and each time sounds like a squatter monkey's squeak."

Tidus freely snickered at that information.

"Stop laughing at me." Yuna tried hard not to smile. "It's easy for you because you've been practicing all your life."

Tidus looked around their circle of friends. "Okay, who's got some pepper so I can hear this squatter monkey?"

"Ah!" Yuna swatted his shoulder and gave him a shove for his teasing.

"I'll get it!" Rikku jumped up and started to run toward Lulu's hut, but Yuna snagged her ankle and jerked her back down to the ground, tossing her pebble right back at her while everyone laughed.

They continued watching the rest of the game until the Aurochs scored their winning goal. Then, Wakka touched the sphere to pause it for a moment. "Alright, everybody, let's give it up for the Aurochs and their new captain!" He led an ovation and round of cheers from the villagers. The players bowed in appreciation and began showing off the medallions they wore around their necks.

Tidus stood and clapped with them to cheer the team effort. "And let's not forget our coach, without whose early morning grumbles about fun runs this would not have been possible!"

"Heh." Wakka backed up and did a sweeping, comical bow.

Tidus walked to his side, paused for a moment, and removed the medallion from his neck. "The first one's for you." He held it out to the large man.

Wakka straightened in surprise and accepted the medal. For a long moment, he seemed to be struggling with words he wanted to say, until finally he bowed in gratitude. "Thanks. I'll, uh, ... put it where Vidina can see it, next to the crystal cup we won two years ago." He sniffled and held the medal high for everyone to see, as more cheers went up from the village gathering.

Tidus grinned at the larger man's feelings about the gift, but couldn't resist letting it go without saying something. "Need a tissue?"

"_No._"

"Looked like you were going to cry."

"Shut up. You're still in big trouble for being late to your first game."

Chuckles rippled around the gathering as Wakka proudly walked back to his hut to put the new medal on display with his other blitzball memorabilia.

"We worked hard to get this win. When do we get to eat?" Datto called out. More chuckles rose around the bonfire and people began moving toward the tables filled with mouth-watering displays of food.

"Want me to get you some?" Tidus asked Yuna, resisting his urge to run for a place in line.

"Yes, please. Only ... my size servings, not yours." She smiled so that her eyes nearly squinted shut.

"Right - spaces between the things on the plate. Want some pepper with that?" he playfully asked.

"Ah! Go!" Yuna pitched a handful of sand at his feet, then watched as he laughed and jogged away to grab some plates.

"I say we pepper her in her sleep tonight," Rikku whispered to Paine, making her chuckle.

"Rikku!" Yuna pitched a handful of sand at her feet, as well.

After the food was eaten and the boisterousness calmed down a little, someone turned the sphere back on and the interview that Tidus did after the game came on next. The laughs all fell into the right places of the campy segment, ... until the end.

When the sphere was turned off, Tidus could have heard a pin drop in the village. To the rest of Spira, he was supposed to have come from Besaid. But to Besaid, he was a visitor they had welcomed without questions about his origins or purpose for being there. Tidus looked at his teammates and saw that each of them wore the same expression as the rest of the villagers. They all wanted to know the same thing. Was it true?

"I remember you saying you played for a Zanarkand team, but we thought you just got too close to Sin." Keepa finally asked what was on everyone's mind. "Are you ... _really_ from Zanarkand?"

"Besaid is his home." Yuna defensively answered before Tidus could answer for himself. "He's one of us now. He's not unsent. Why can't anyone accept that? He hasn't done anything to deserve this kind of -"

"Yuna." Tidus quietly interrupted and gave her a pleading look. "If Besaid can't accept me for what I really am, then no place will." He scanned the faces of the villagers he had come to know by name. "Yes, I really did come from Zanarkand," he answered Keepa. "But, not the real one. I'm from another Zanarkand created by the Fayth's dream magic. That's why I had to leave two years ago. When they faded, I had to go, too. I'm back because I … wanted a second chance at a real life."

Whispers and murmurs went around the gathering as the villagers considered this news and began putting it together with questions left unanswered about his mysterious appearances. He wasn't real? Why hadn't they seen the warning signs before now? If he was sent with the Fayth, didn't that make him unsent? What if he turned into a fiend?

Tidus lowered his gaze to the ground. He could have tried to explain it further, but it probably wouldn't have done anything to ease their minds. He wasn't real. He was a wandering soul, and that made him no different from the other spirits that refused to give up this world for death. When he looked up again, however, he was surprised to find Cid, Brother, Buddy, and Shinra looking sympathetic. Rikku and Yuna seemed worried. And Paine, Wakka, and Lulu were getting irritated at the paranoia they were overhearing. It was a mild comfort to know that if the villagers rejected him, at least he had friends who would not.

Suddenly, Lulu stood with her baby in her arms and scowled at the gathering. "I cannot believe you people!"

"Uh-oh. Scary woman's back." Wakka mumbled as his wife confronted the entire village.

"Just a few minutes ago, you were hailing him as a hero. Now you're calling him a fiend." Lulu clutched Vidina closer and moved to stand front and center in the ring around the bonfire. "Two years ago, when Wakka and I fought to protect Yuna on her pilgrimage, Tidus stood by us every step of the way. I didn't like him either, at first."

"Oi," Tidus frowned in complaint.

"But he's proven his worth many times over since," she continued. "In fact, I'm sure most of you haven't thanked him for it yet, but he's the one who struck the final blow to Sin!" The mutterings of the gathering intensified at that news, but Lulu continued to speak over them. "He willingly completed the task that would save us all, knowing that it would end his own existence! He didn't come back from that fight because the Fayth took him with them, yet you accuse him of being unsent like those hollow souls that walk Spira after death and take revenge upon the living."

Tidus closed his eyes and tried to calm his anxious heartbeat. He wished Lulu would sit down and shut up before she made things worse. To imply that he was some kind of savior, or that the people of Spira owed him something for killing his own father was too much. Perhaps the Fayth had been wrong to summon him back from the Farplane. Perhaps he should go back before someone got hurt. Rising to his feet, he turned to leave.

"Tidus." Yuna grabbed his hand to beg him to stay.

Lulu marched toward him, grabbed him by the hand, and pulled him toward the center of the gathering with her. "Hold out your arms," she instructed, positioning him with his back to the large bonfire while keeping a safe distance from it.

Tidus shook his head at the futility of the black mage's attempt to change their minds about his condition, but he lifted his arms, palms up, reluctantly demonstrating he was not a ghost, … or a fiend.

Her intense, crimson eyes focused on him for a moment, then she placed her infant son in his arms and backed away.

Confused, Tidus watched her retreat. What would this prove? That he was solid enough to hold a baby? That he wouldn't attack it?

Lulu drew a steady breath and started to walk back to Wakka, but stopped mid-way and gestured for him to remain seated and calm. "Fire!" the black mage suddenly shouted and raked her hand through the air as she spun back toward Tidus. The arc of flames conjured from her magic whipped through her fingertips like a solar flare.

"Lu! No!" Wakka's eyes widened in shock and fear as he jumped to his feet to stop her.

The crowd gasped in horror.

As she had predicted he would, Tidus turned is own back toward the flames to shield the infant from the attack. He suffered a terrible burn for it, but Vidina was unharmed, other than being startled by the sudden movement.

"Are you _insane_?" someone shouted from the crowd.

"Are you trying to kill your own baby?" cried another.

Lulu shook her head. "He would never let me do that." The black mage approached Tidus and gazed apologetically at the blistering wounds she had drawn across his back, shoulder, and arm. As he gritted his teeth and fought to control his pain, she lifted her crying baby from his arms. "Consider it a Cloister of Trials, guardian. They will trust you more than they trust me now. I'm sorry, ... but thank you for protecting my son," she whispered with tear-rimmed eyes that betrayed her boldness at having done such risky thing. Kissing her unhappy infant on his small head, she cradled him to her breast and made her way back to her stunned and panicked husband.

"Tidus!" Yuna ran to his side and began casting her white magic on his arm to cool and cure his burns as quickly as possible.

He shivered beneath the healing, and as the black mage walked away, everyone else rushed forward to his aid.

"How can we help?" Paine asked with worry as she joined them.

"Something cold and wet for his back," Rikku guessed and ran off to hunt down anything she could douse in water.

"Take him over to that blanket to lie down!" Cid directed.

"Rikku!" Keepa called to her throwing her a small towel. "There's a cooler over there with melted ice in it."

"I go get fire extinguisher!" Brother shouted and ran back toward the ship.

His heart was still racing from the searing pain and shock of the frightening test as Paine and Datto tried to help him toward the blanket Cid indicated. Between the villagers and teammates encircling him with concern, Tidus could see Lulu trying to find comfort in Wakka's arms. He couldn't begin to comprehend the depth of faith she had just demonstrated to prove the extent of his trustworthiness, but her trial-by-fire reminded him that in the real world, trust had to be earned.


	7. Chapter 7: Spunky Monkey

Chapter 7: Spunky Monkey

Tidus stared out at the blue ocean watching the seagulls fly overhead as he sat alone on the ferry docks. It was a very hot and humid day, and though he had plenty that he could have been doing, he preferred to just cool his feet in the ocean for the moment. He heard footsteps approaching from behind, but they didn't sound ... normal. After a moment of trying to guess what it was, he looked over his shoulder. "A ... monkey?"

Not just any monkey - it was a monkey with bright orange fur, white bangs, and two blue-striped feathers on its head. Even its tail was striped. The monkey chattered wildly at him for a moment, then immediately began digging in his pockets.

"Hey! Cut it out!"

The monkey grasped a handful of gil and started to run away. Tidus reached for its tail, his quick reflexes snapping it to a halt instantly. The monkey, surprised at being caught, suddenly whirled on him. Jumping up and down all over his head and shoulders, the monkey chittered, scratched, and nipped at him with the energy of a miniature tornado.

"Ghiki! Ghiki, you leave him alone!" Rikku ran down the docks in a long, patchwork, yellow dress that looked entirely too big for her. "Ghiki! You come here this instant!" she angrily commanded.

Tidus released the monkey, and it scampered back to her. After leaping up her arms and climbing onto her head, it stopped and fingered the treasure it had claimed. Tidus stared at her as if she had just come from the moon. "That _thing_ belongs to you? It stole my gil!"

"Well, I'm trying to train him not to do it to everyone." Rikku reached above her head for the monkey's hands and pried one of the coins loose. "But he doesn't know you yet. How was he supposed to know you weren't a bad guy?"

"Maybe the fact that I was just sitting here minding my own business?" Tidus stood, held out his hand for his money, and paused to count what she handed back. It was part of his first earnings from the blitz game win, and he wasn't about to let that creature keep it. "He's still got one." He reached to get it himself, but the monkey screeched at him and turned around on Rikku's head to face the other way.

"Ghiki, give it back to him." Rikku pointed to Tidus.

The monkey made a sound that sounded distinctly like a chirped "no" and curled into a comfortable position to play with the shiny thing.

"Rikku!" Paine called a short distance away. She, too, was wearing her trainer dress sphere and stroked a blue bird of prey that rested on her arm. They had been working together on training their familiars. "Gippal's here. I'm going to take him on up to see Cid."

Tidus used the opportunity of Rikku's surprise turn-around to pinch his remaining coin from the monkey's paws, but the monkey responded by leaping back onto his head with a most unhappy fervor. "Rikku! Get your creature off of me!"

Paine stopped on the docks and tilted her chin with interest as Tidus tried to catch and remove the monkey that was all over his head trying to box his ears. "Need help?" she asked after a moment.

Tidus finally pulled the squirming, noisy thing out of his hair and pried its tail from around his neck. "No, ... thank you." He shoved it back toward Rikku. "I have everything under control."

Paine smirked. "You can fight Sin, but you can't handle a monkey?"

"I can handle the monkey," Tidus snapped at her.

"Doesn't look like it."

Gippal caught up to them and stopped behind Paine's shoulder. Unlike Paine, he was not amused. He met Tidus with cool regard. "Are we going in, or not?"

Paine looked over her shoulder at him and then turned and led him back down the docks toward the airship.

Rikku's monkey scurried back to his familiar perch on her head as soon as she took him into her arms. "Hey, wait up!" She ran after them.

Tidus rubbed the sore spots where the monkey had pulled his hair. Then, he gave his head a dog-like shake and tried to finger-comb it back into reasonable shape as he returned to his previous lounging position. "Stupid monkey." He slipped his gil back into his pocket and lay back on the docks to watch the clouds drift by.

))((

"Are you here to talk with Pop about fixing Spira's Heart?" Rikku asked as she caught up to Paine and Gippal.

"Yep. Got the gear all ready to go to Bevelle, but we need to find out exactly where we're going and set up a plan on how to do it first." Gippal took a long look at Rikku as he trudged through the sand behind Paine. "Monkey on your head - that's a new look for you. Personally, I thought the beads and braids were enough of a hair accessory, but you always were kinda weird."

Rikku ignored his teasing. "This is Ghiki. He's part of the magic from one of my dress spheres. I'm teaching him to help me fight fiends. He just happens to like shiny things, so he has a tendency to steal gil and stuff."

The monkey chattered and studied Gippal keenly.

Gippal turned his sharp eye on the animal. "Don't even think about it."

Ghiki chirped and sank obediently into a curled position on Rikku's head, ... until she walked under the door frame of the airship's hatch. The monkey's head made solid contact with a low part of the frame and in the next instant it was laid out on its back in the sand.

Rikku heard the thunk and the squawk and felt the top of her head. She stopped and looked over her shoulder at the prone creature. "Well, what'd you do that for, silly?" Not realizing it had been an accident, or that her own forgetfulness of the monkey's perch was to blame, Rikku picked up the slightly dazed animal and carried it on board in her arms.

"Cid and the others are up in the bridge. You can go on up," Paine told Gippal, as she grabbed Rikku's hand and pulled her aside.

"Okay. Later." Gippal touched a finger to the sharp beak of her bird drawing a throaty growl from it, but he only smirked at its warning and continued the rest of the way into the airship on his own.

When he was gone, Paine got right to the point with Rikku. "We need to talk to him about Tidus."

"How?" Rikku cradled her monkey in her over-sized sleeves.

"I've got a plan."

"Hey, that's my line."

))((

Having dismissed her Flurry from its training, Paine changed her garment grid to her cooler thief sphere and sauntered down the docks one more time to find Tidus right where they left him. "You're not being very productive today, you know. Rebelling against Brother's chore list again? We all have to do chores around the ship to keep it running, and you're no exception. Besides, it's good discipline for the mind and body, just like any other kind of thing you have to work hard at."

Tidus opened one eye and squinted up at her from his flat, inverted position. "I'm taking some time off to think, O Warrior-One. Can't I do that once in a while?"

"I suppose." She sat down cross-legged next to him. "Thinking about what Lulu did last night?"

"Yeah." He turned his gaze back to the clouds overhead. "If I hadn't been quick enough ..."

"She knew what she was doing, or she wouldn't have done it. She called out the spell to give you warning. She used only the minimum amount needed for the effect, and she fired in an arc rather than sending it straight so you could see it coming. And she knew Yuna would be able to heal the burns. It was the only way to prove to the rest of the village how deeply she trusted you."

Tidus blinked at her and raised himself to his elbows, surprised that the normally silent young woman was taking the time and the initiative to talk to him.

"Not only did you _not_ hurt him, you put yourself in the line of fire to protect him, … literally." She cast him a side-glance. "It will remind them that you used to be a summoner's guardian. It was a smart plan to get them to accept you, but it took guts."

"Well, that's Lulu for you. Not so sure that it worked, though."

"Give it time. The villagers knew you as a friend before they knew you as a fiend. They'll remember that after what you showed them last night."

"Well, Yuna's not so sure. She's making rounds with the village elders, temple guardians, and anyone else that would be the most likely to protest my presence. She's explaining how I never really died, so I'm not unsent. I'm still alive, … even though I was never real. And yet, … I was. Kinda." He laid a hand over his chest where he imagined the core of his borrowed soul to be. "If my soul comes from a dead person, maybe I'm really unsent after all, even though I'm no longer that person." Tidus sighed in discouragement at how confusing it was. "She does a better job of explaining me than I do."

"Is that why you're sitting here moping?"

"I'm not moping. I'm thinking, I told you."

"Same difference." Paine lifted her eyes to the water's endless horizon. "It would mean a lot to her if you gave this Zanarkand library thing another try, you know."

"Nobody else wants me there."

"You might be able to swing Gippal in your favor." She turned her chin to look at him.

"He didn't seem interested."

"Well, it might take guts, … but he knew you as a friend before he knew you as a fiend." A small smirk touched her lips.

Tidus narrowed his eyes, wondering what she had in mind.

))((

After pausing in the lift to whisper something to her Ghiki, Rikku wandered onto the bridge where Gippal stood with Shinra, Brother, Buddy, and Cid looking over the results that Shinra and Buddy tested on the machina in the Farplane. "What'cha doing?" She leaned over their shoulders.

"Laying out a plan, Darling," Cid announced. "We're going to take a major operation with us down under Bevelle and set up stations to explore the core of Spira. Er, I mean, the ship. We have to try to find its artificial intelligence system so that we can learn which functions are capable of shutting down for repairs without throwing everything off kilter."

"If you're not doing anything when we go work on it, we could probably use your help setting up," Buddy inserted.

"Sure thing. But how are you going to be able to work under Bevelle and attend meetings above it, too?" she asked of Gippal.

Gippal shrugged. "When there's a meeting, I'll go to the meeting. The rest of the time, I'll be under the city working on Spira's core, or working with Kimahri Ronso on the library's structure. Operations at Djose are just going to have to slow down for the time being until Spira's repaired. But the good news is that we might be able to use some of our research there to fix her."

"Oh. Hmm, I guess that's not going to give you much time to get out and do fun things, huh?"

"Nope. Guess not."

"What a shame. You should make time for something fun to do with a friend before you have to go back to Bevelle, don't you think? I know! How about going hover bike riding in the Calm Lands. Nothing like wide open spaces to feel free and easy, right? I know someone who'd like to learn how to ride one," she sang, hinting.

Gippal set down the specs he was looking at and leaned forward on the console to look up at her. "Rikku, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were asking me out on a date."

Cid loudly cleared his throat and gave his daughter a doubtful look. Brother started laughing loudly. Buddy and Shinra both chuckled at this development.

Rikku's eyes widened and she blushed. "Not _me_!" She gave a light stomp in disgust at his teasing, but within her voluminous sleeve, she gave her fingers a crisp, but discreet, snap.

On cue, Ghiki grabbed the paper specs and ran out of the bridge with them.

"Hey! Come back here with those!" Gippal chased the monkey down the hall to the lift, but missed getting into it as the doors shut. "Open up!" He banged a fist on the door. "Rikku!" he turned and scowled at her.

Rikku cleared her throat and took her leisurely time walking down the hall to the lift. She paused a moment, giving Gippal and the other impatient men a "hmpf" over her shoulder and then touched the button that would open the lift. Mysteriously, though it hadn't opened for Gippal, it opened for her. "Honestly, four grown men, and not one of them can open a lift by themselves?" She stepped into it and was promptly shoved aside and squashed by Brother, Gippal, Buddy and Cid in a mad rush to go down after the monkey who stole their valuable blueprints.

))((

"Get up." Paine stood and used the pointed toe of her shoe in his ribs to encourage him to do the same.

Tidus sighed and stood, slipping his hands in the pockets of his shorts as he followed her.

"Still want to learn how to ride a hover bike?" she asked as they strolled down the dock.

"Yeah, I guess so. They've practically finished fixing that one that I busted, but they'll probably never let me on it again."

"Well, how'd you like to learn how to ride from an expert?"

Tidus snorted with doubt. "Are you volunteering to teach me?"

"No. I could teach you how to fight without swords, but Gippal's the expert on hover bikes. He's got the same taste for high speed and sharp curves that you do, but he knows how to avoid rolling over a cliff into the rocks. If you were to do him a favor, he'd probably be willing to teach you, ... and help you deal with Baralai and Nooj at the council meetings. He's not a push-over, though. He's got an ingenious mind. You'll have to be clever about convincing him you're worth it."

Tidus was doubtful that Gippal would ever agree to that, so he considered her other option. "Why would I want to fight without my swords? Smack a drake around with Caladbolg a few times, and he's history."

"Hand-to-hand fighting is good to know when you find yourself unarmed, or when you want to defend yourself but not hurt your opponent. You could add it to your Besaid sphere. It's not being used for anything yet, is it?"

"If I'm in a fight, I'm probably going to _want_ to hurt my opponent," he sarcastically disagreed.

Paine nodded, as if accepting his different perspective, but then she whirled around and slammed her boot into his gut. When he doubled, winded and in pain, she kicked him again in the shoulder to push him back. And when he threw out a hand to fend her off, she caught it and flipped him onto his back.

As a blitzball player, Tidus was used to getting tackled in a rough manner - just not on a hard, wooden dock by a woman in two-inch heels. He groaned for a moment and then winced up at her.

"So, ... where's your sword?" she asked, amused at his supine predicament.

"I couldn't reach it because my arm was just ripped out of its socket," he complained before sitting up and giving his shoulder a careful rotation. "I think you just punctured my spleen, too."

"Are you sure you don't want me to train you in hand-to-hand?"

Tidus gave the silver-haired woman a suspicious stare. This was very unlike her to be so helpful and talkative. "What do you get out of it?"

She leaned over him, hands on her knees and a subtle gleam in her crimson eyes. "Jecht shot."

Tidus chuckled and stood. "So you can improve your game, or so you can kill someone with it?"

"Both have their uses." Paine heard a distant chittering sound and looked up to spot Rikku's monkey scampering out of the hatch of the airship. It was racing across the beach with a large piece of paper in its hands. Grabbing Tidus's hand, she quickly dragged him with her into one of the small fishing huts near the boats and hid behind the door flap to peer around the edge. Tidus was about to question the strange action when she cut him off. "There goes your key to getting hover lessons and an ally at the conference."

He leaned over her shoulder to peer around the corner with her. "The _monkey_? You've got to be kidding."


	8. Chapter 8: Friends and Fiends

Chapter 8: Friends and Fiends

"Ghiki has something that belongs to Gippal," Paine explained to Tidus as they both hid in the fishing hut and watched Rikku's monkey zig-zag across the beach with a large paper fluttering in its clutches. "Help him get it back, and it will give him reasonable doubt about you being Shuyin."

Tidus drew back to blink at her. "That is the _dumbest_ plan I've ever heard. Rikku came up with this, didn't she?"

She gave him a severe frown. "_I_ came up with it. You got a better idea?"

"Anything else is better than chasing that monkey."

"Get a grip. It's just a monkey."

"That is not a normal monkey." He tried to keep his voice down to avoid drawing attention to their hiding place. "It's the monkey from hell. That thing is Sin spawn!"

Paine reached over her shoulder, grabbed his shirt, and gave him a push to send him on his way, but he dug his toes into the sand and clung to the door of the sturdy tent, refusing to budge.

"Can't make me do it," he protested. "I'm not getting anywhere near that monkey again."

As she tried to push him out of the tent, he leaned against her to push his way back in. "You said you could handle the monkey!" she grunted as she strained against his chest. "You have to be the one to bring it back!"

As if he were resisting a tackle in a blitzball match, Tidus put his shoulder to hers, gritted his teeth, and stubbornly held his ground. "It stole my gil, … pulled my hair out, … poked me in the eyes, … bit my ear, … and stuck its fingers up my nose!"

She tried to get a different hold on him so she could wrestle him out of the tent, but he reversed his position and pushed her hands away. "Damn it, Tidus! Just go get the monkey!" she impatiently hissed, slamming her back against him and bracing her position with her legs.

"Naaaii-NO!" he growled back in refusal, still trying to shoulder her away from the door. But as he continued to resist, the humor of the situation made him begin to snicker. And since such things are contagious, Paine found herself reluctantly snickering, too. A few seconds later, the snickers degenerated into giggles and then laughter, at not being able to break their stalemate. Finally, Tidus released his end of the push allowing her to topple to the sandy floor of the tent. "Fine," he groused in surrender as he extended a hand to help her stand again. "I'll go catch the stupid monkey."

Laughter subsiding, Paine accepted his hand. But as she looked up, face-to-face, her attention unintentionally lingered. Her heart began to race. Tearing her gaze away, she tried hard to find something else to look at besides him.

Unable to believe he agreed to this, Tidus shook his head and jogged out of the tent.

As she watched him go, a pang of guilt twitched through her entire body for having enjoyed his company more than she intended. Deep down, she knew why, but she groaned to herself and buried her head in her arms all the same. She would have to talk to Yuna tonight. After a moment to compose herself, she stood and returned to the airship. "What's going on?" she asked, feigning innocence as she jogged to join them.

Rikku gave her a sly wink and a small wave as she approached. "Ghiki stole Gippal's printouts on Spira's core." She pointed to Gippal's back as he raced up the beach looking for the creature. "Tidus, since you're not doing anything important, you should help him get them back." She ran after Brother, who had started to join the chase, and caught his arm to pull him back. "The rest of us should probably go back inside and keep talking about the plans."

"It's your fault! It's a stupid monkey you have!" Brother yelled at her. Rikku just grinned at Tidus and pushed her brother toward the airship.

Tidus squinted at Paine with one more generous helping of doubt.

"Yuna wants you at those meetings," she reminded him, keeping herself focused, as well. "Good luck."

))((

When he caught up to the Al Bhed at the crossroads, Tidus scanned the area with no idea which way the monkey had gone. "Maybe we can see him from up there," he suggested, pointing to some overgrown ruins on one of the hills above the beach. Without waiting for Gippal's response, he ran to a sandstone wall and sprang high enough to catch onto one of the vines. Then, he pulled himself up over the edge. Brush, low palms, and more hills blocked a portion of the road, so he turned and grabbed another vine to climb to the top ledge. There, he spotted a little orange blob of fur bouncing into the opening of a cavern he had never noticed before. "He's going into a cave near the ruins up ahead!"

Without a word of gratitude for his lookout, Gippal turned left and ran toward the ruins.

"Thanks, man. That was amazingly helpful. Don't mention it," Tidus muttered to himself as he hopped down from the hill into the soft sand and sprinted after him. When he caught up to him a second time, Gippal was already inside the cavern, and the monkey's chattering could be heard throughout the entire interior.

The monkey jumped up and down and flapped the paper around in excitement, taunting them.

"Why you little ..." The Al Bhed made a dash for it, but the monkey turned and raced further back into the cavern.

As Gippal chased down the monkey, Tidus ran after them. "If we had a net of some kind, we could trap it," he suggested. "Want me to run back and get one from the fishing huts?"

"I don't recall asking for your help. I do things on my own, all right?"

Tidus snorted at that claim. "You're not going to be able to catch that monkey on your own."

"Well, we'll see about that. I'll get those specs back if I have to blast that furball to pieces." Their running came to a halt as they cornered the monkey at a dead end in the very back of the tunnel. Gippal slowed his approach to catch his breath and keep the monkey calm. "Okay, stay there. Nice and easy ... There's a good monkey. Just hand over the paper, and no one will get hurt." Gippal stretched out his hand, trying to get as close to the paper as possible without startling the animal.

Tidus shifted between flanking Gippal's right and left to cover the space behind him, when a low growl put both of them on alert.

Gipal remained calm, but did not straighten or turn. "There's something behind us, isn't there?"

Tidus winced and let his head fall back, then hesitantly looked over his shoulder. "Oh yeah."

"Big, spotted cat? Long ears? Even longer whiskers?" Gippal asked, still motionless, but calm.

"Coeurl regina," Tidus confirmed. Beautiful to behold with their spotted coats of many colors, these large, feral cats were a rarity on the island, but among its most lethal inhabitants.

Gippal muttered a curse under his breath. "Not even a normal coeurl - no, of course not. Sticky Fingers, here, leads us to the queen bee."

Tidus swallowed nervously as a second cat's face appeared behind the first in the shadows. "Make that _two_ coeurl reginas, ... and one of them looks like it's absorbed some fiends."

The monkey screeched and shot to Gippal's left to make its escape. Tidus tried to block it, but it darted between his legs and sped past the large wildcats back toward the cave's entrance.

Gippal drew a steady breath as he turned to face the two cats prowling forward with low, threatening growls. "I'm really beginning to hate that monkey," he stated, drawing his gun.

"Not half as much as I do." Tidus drew his garment grid out, switched his sphere to guardian mode, and unsheathed Brotherhood. "Shoot as many holes in them as you can before they can reach us. I'll take it from there."

Gippal fired one shot, but it showered multiple magic pellets into the cats all at once. The premier coeurl faltered in pain, but still leaped at him, knocking him back and raking its claws across his chest. Tidus swept Brotherhood toward the cat's side to get its attention away from the man underneath him, then thrust the sword into the cat's ribs. The grievously wounded beast staggered and fell, but snapped its head around and bit down on Tidus's sword arm before he could withdraw the blade. Tidus grimaced in pain and tried to pull free before the other cat could attack, but the coeurl that glowed with the possession of fiends lay down on the cold, stone floor to complete the spell that it had been weaving in the air above it. Tidus paled in recognition of the magical attack that was coming. Coeurl could paralyze and drain their prey before even touching them.

Gippal backed away and fired one more shot directly into the chest of the aggressive coeurl before it slumped, lifeless, to the ground. Then, he steadied his flame-colored revolver on the cat that remained.

"That won't be enough! Use the other one!" Tidus warned about the single-shot weapon as he pried his arm from between the first cat's teeth.

Gippal fired with one hand while reaching for the larger gun with the other.

The coeurl's unnatural body blinked, allowing all the bullets to pass harmlessly through it. Then, a blast of magic shot through the air and hit Tidus, instantly draining his strength. Dropping to one knee, he had to lean against his sword to even stay upright. Gippal fired the larger gun, landing a solid hit to the cat's skull. That shot would have killed a normal coeurl, but this one stood beyond death and launched a physical attack on its weakened prey. Brotherhood pierced the cat's chest straight through to its shoulder, but the impact of the attack, left Tidus flat on his back beneath it. The possessed coeurl regina's body remained skewered on his blade for a long moment before finally dispersing in a gush of pyreflies. Then both young men took a moment to catch their breath, calm the adrenaline rush, and consider what a close call it had been.

"I smell a set-up." Gippal stood and put away his guns. "Rikku's behind this, isn't she?"

"Paine's idea, but yeah, basically." Brotherhood clattered to the floor as Tidus pushed himself up and leaned against the rock wall behind him.

"Paine, too?" The Al Bhed's brow quirked as he reached into one of his pouches and produced two small bottles of a rare, powerful healing potion.

"They wanted you to believe I'm not Shuyin." Tidus faced him just in time to catch the bottle that was tossed in his direction. He was so weak, however, that it slipped through his fingers and shattered on the stone floor.

Gippal gave him a flat expression for dropping the valuable item. Pulling a third bottle from his utility belt, the Al Bhed walked to him, took his hand, and firmly placed a second, cheaper version of the potion in it for him to try again. "Well, it didn't work."

"Do you honestly think I would agree to one of their crazy plans and help you fight those coeurl if I had a vendetta against you?" Tidus asked in disbelief.

Gippal smirked and drank his potion to close the stinging wounds that the coeurl had ripped into his chest. "I think Shuyin was a dangerous man when he got ticked off. And when they took his girl, ... that _really_ ticked him off. So, all of this aside, if what you said about coming back from the dream just to be with Yuna is true, it makes sense you could be him. Know what I'm saying?"

"So, … I'm not allowed to be with Yuna just because Shuyin wanted to be with his girl? Since when does Shuyin own exclusive rights to something like that?" Tidus drank the blue liquid given to him and winced at the strong burn that rippled down his throat as the medicine restored enough strength for him to stand. Reclaiming Brotherhood, he sheathed it behind his back. "Before I came back, Yuna came in search of me. She's the reason the Fayth brought me back, and she's the one who wants me to help on the library project. I don't mind helping, if I can, but Baralai and Nooj seem to have a problem with me being there, and someone's started spreading rumors that I'm unsent because I come from Zanarkand. I want to know who leaked it because it's had some ugly kickbacks already, and I don't want to see anyone get hurt, … especially not Yuna."

The Al Bhed shook his head after finishing off the last of his healing potion. "I saw that interview from Luca, but Baralai and Nooj wouldn't resort to gossip as a tactic. If they don't want you on the council, they'll tell you to your face and physically bar you from entering the temple. You'll get a spear up your nose instead of a reporter."

"Baralai's done almost as much."

Gippal waved a hand of no concern. "Baralai's easy to crack if you know which of his buttons to push. He's spooked because Shuyin possessed him. He's going to be careful to avoid unnecessary risks that could make it happen again. He's very protective. Nooj, ... he's going to be tougher to convince because he's the opposite. Nooj has a tendency to throw caution to the wind because he leans toward the philosophy that he's got nothing to lose. He'll watch you like a hawk and then swoop for an attack before you can convince him of anything. What you need to do is be ready for him, and then beat him at his own game."

Tidus tilted his chin at Gippal's subtle change of heart. "Then, ... you'll help convince them I'm not Shuyin?"

Gippal gave him a calculating once-over and moved to stand before him. "Well, whoever you are, those girls must think you're worth listening to if they went through all this trouble to lead us in here."

Tidus was amused at his assessment. "Either that, or they wanted to kill us."

Gippal hooked an arm across Tidus's shoulders and lifted his own chin as if envisioning something grand. "You know, ... if you were Shuyin, you'd probably insist on doing something really nasty to them as payback for this. But if you're not Shuyin, you might forgive them and pretend it never happened."

"Well, ... I don't know what Shuyin would do, but I say the monkey goes down."

"Good answer. That monkey's going down." Gippal slapped a hand to Tidus's back and led the way back down the tunnel toward the cavern exit.

))((

Yuna returned to the cabin after a long, hot day of visiting various people in the village to answer their concerns about Tidus's origins. She sat down at the bar and fanned herself with a napkin as the hypello came to her. "Can I get someshing for yoo, Mish Yuna?"

"A tall, cold glass of ice water, please, Barkeep." She used the napkin to dab at the perspiration on her forehead while she waited.

"We have shome cold tangerinesh," he suggested.

"Wonderful. I'll take two."

Paine took the bar stool beside Yuna and quietly slid her arms onto the counter, folding her fingers loosely between one another. "How'd it go?"

"Pretty well, I think. Once I explained as much as I could about his origins, most people were more fascinated than afraid. There were a few devout followers of the old Yevon teachings that still don't quite understand he isn't unsent, but no one insisted that he leave. Thanks to Lulu, I think Besaid is pretty much taken care of, as far as the rumor's damage goes. It's the cities that worry me, though. Blitz fans might stop attending his games if they think he's unsent."

The hypello placed a bowl of quartered tangerines on the counter between the two women and gave each of them glasses of water.

"Thanks," Paine mumbled for his consideration of her presence, but she didn't drink or eat anything right away.

"What have you guys been up to all day?" Yuna picked out a tangerine quarter and peeled the ends back, popping the cold, juicy treat into her mouth.

"Gippal came over to talk about the plans for the repairs on Spira's core."

"Did he say anything about Tidus being on the council, or what happened after we left?"

"No, but Rikku and I came up with some ideas to sort of ... start dialog flowing between him and Tidus."

"Oh?"

"Rikku had Ghiki steal something from Gippal and hide it in the ruins, while I convinced Tidus to help him get it back."

Yuna laughed lightly. "Forced cooperation. That's smart. How'd it go?"

"They haven't come back yet." Paine remained solemn. "Yuna, ... I need to tell you something."

Yuna studied the unusually troubled expression in Paine's eyes. Her friend was usually so private, so reserved about her feelings. "What's wrong?"

Paine stared into her glass of ice water for a long moment before finding the appropriate words. "This afternoon, ... for just a moment, ... Tidus made my heart skip a beat."


	9. Chapter 9: Trial and Error

Chapter 9: Trial and Error

Yuna was careful not to let her shock outwardly show. What was Paine trying to tell her by saying Tidus made her heart skip a beat? The former summoner awkwardly turned her attention to the shell ring on her finger. It was obvious what Paine was trying to tell her, wasn't it? "That happens to me quite a bit when I'm around him," she agreed, not knowing what else to say.

Paine leaned closer. "Yuna, I didn't mean for it to happen, and I don't think he was even aware of it. Nothing came of it. I swear it."

Yuna brows rose in confusion. "Then, ... why are you telling me?"

Paine sighed and turned away. She glanced around the room to make sure no one else was eavesdropping, then spoke quietly. "Tidus makes me laugh. It's not just that I find him amusing; he can make me _really_ laugh. There's not many people who can get to me that way. So, when he does, ... he reminds me of someone else."

Yuna could understand that. "Laughter draws people together."

Reluctantly, Paine continued. "This other guy, ... there was something about being around him that made me feel like it was _okay_ to laugh and not take things so seriously, you know? He made it easy to have fun back then. But when things changed - I mean, he's still laid-back, but he's got his scars now like the rest of us. He doesn't laugh so much these days. I kinda miss it."

"Gippal?" Yuna guessed with a bittersweet smile.

Dropping her chin into her hand, Paine sighed and swirled the ice in her water glass without confirming or denying anything. "I just want you to know I don't have any feelings for Tidus. I would never try to ..."

"I know." Yuna gently clasped a hand over Paine's wrist. "And it means a lot to me that you would be honest now, instead of allowing it to become distorted and painful."

"I've offered to train him in hand-to-hand, if he'll teach me that Jecht shot. But if you're uncomfortable with it, say the word, and I'll find an excuse to back out." Paine smiled to herself. "Like I said, I don't think he even noticed, but I'll be more aware of what my subconscious is doing from now on to prevent it from happening again."

Yuna laughed lightly. "I wish I had that kind of self-control. When my heart flip-flops like that, it shows all over on my face."

"Well, there's an opening for another student, if you want me to train both of you."

"Maybe later, when this library project is done, but it's okay with me if he wants to train. He couldn't have a better trainer if it were Sir Auron himself."

Paine smiled and nodded at the compliment to her martial skills, but then she noticed the time. "Tidus and Gippal have been gone a little longer than I thought they would. There are probably fiends in that cave, but I thought both of them would be fully capable of handling them. Maybe we should go check on them."

"Mh." Yuna took one more tangerine from her bowl before following Paine out of the cabin toward the lift.

"Rikku, has Ghiki come back yet?" Paine asked, as she passed the younger girl in the hall.

"No, I was just going to ask if you'd seen him. It's been a couple of hours now. I'm wondering if they made it out of the cave okay."

"We think we should check on them."

Rikku thought that sounded like a good idea.

From their rare treasury displayed in some glass cabinets in the cabin, Paine grabbed a magical charm that would ward most fiends away from them, and the trio set off to see what had become of their plan to trap Gippal into working with Tidus. They arrived at the cave and walked from one end to the other without a single fiend bothering them along the way, but all that they found was the body of one dead coeurl regina, a shattered bottle of healing potion, and a lot of blood smears on the cavern floor.

Rikku wailed at the sight. "What if they were eaten? Oh, this is all my fault! I shouldn't have told Ghiki to lead them in here!" Then, she paused and pointed to Paine. "Wait a minute. Technically, it's your fault this time."

Paine looked like she wanted to deck her, right then and there. "Shut up; I'm thinking." She paced a few steps, then crouched to study the wounds on the coeurl regina's body. "It's got bullet wounds, but it was also slashed by a sword. Both of them were here, but there's no trace of them leaving. If they were killed, then Ghiki and Tidus probably disappeared without a trace because they're made of magic. But Gippal's body should still be here, ... right?"

"Unless he was eaten!" Rikku wrung her hands, moaned, and dropped to her knees behind the dead coeurl regina. "Gippal, please don't be in there!" She pushed lightly on the cat's ribs and belly, then pinched and pulled up its lip, trying to peer past the sharp teeth into its mouth.

"Maybe they found a hidden wall?" Yuna suggested, trying to stay positive. "Maybe they're in the secret room at the front, or maybe there's another hidden room we don't know about."

They went back through the cavern feeling along the sides of the walls every inch of the way trying to determine if they had missed a hidden passage, until they reached the one in the front and opened it with the code they had found before. There wasn't a stitch to be found of Tidus, Gippal, or Ghiki. So, the women decided to split up and search the rest of the island.

))((

Down at the fishing huts, the Ghiki monkey found itself suddenly trapped under a heavy fishing net and dragged across the sand. It protested with loud chatters and tried to gnaw through the ropes, but the fine netting between the large cords only mashed its nose when it put its face up against it.

Tidus successfully pulled the monkey off of the ground and held the little tornado up at eye level with a grimace. "So, how do we get him there? He's really ticked off now."

"I came by hover craft. It's parked just in that little bend around the main beach. We can tie him to the back of it and fly him out that way."

"Hover craft?" Tidus grinned. "Would a hover bike be any faster?"

"You got one?"

"No, but ... the Celsius does."

"Lead the way."

Tidus held the spitting and squirming monkey at arm's length as they walked back to the airship, but then the monkey started shredding the paper it had been charged to steal.

"Aaahhhh! You freaky little bastard!" Gippal grabbed the net to rescue the paper that had already been dragged, crumpled, ripped, and blotched with sea foam during the chase. "Give me back those specs!"

"Don't let it out!" Tidus jerked it away from him, then opened the net just enough for Gippal to reach in and snatch the pieces of paper from the monkey before they became too small. Then, he pushed the monkey's head back into the net and twisted the top again before it could escape.

The monkey made faces at them, then stuck out its tongue and razzed them. But realizing it couldn't win, Ghiki curled into a ball with a huff and sulked.

Gippal looked over the pieces of paper, growled under his breath, and marched onto the airship straight to the bridge. "Where's Rikku?" he demanded of anyone that could answer.

"Out looking for you, I think." Cid came to greet them and took note of the trapped monkey.

Gippal slapped the torn specs down on the control console for everyone to see. "Mind if we borrow the hover bike for a quick trip?"

"We haven't tested it yet." Buddy lifted one of the pieces and winced at it.

"You _do realize_ I could have just printed out another copy," Shinra calmly stated, sitting on his knees and looking over the back of his chair at them.

Sweaty, sandy, and still smeared in dried blood, Gippal and Tidus both looked at him with mute disgust.

"You can take the hover bike and run the tests for us, if you like," Brother suggested to Gippal. "Just go through all the gears and features at least once. Let us know what you think. Of course if it breaks down on you, it's his fault." He pointed to Tidus. "He is not mechanically gifted, like me." He shook his head, pitying the blitz player.

"_Dryhgc_," Gippal thanked him in their native language of Al Bhed and turned on his heel toward the lift once more. Tidus followed, still holding the monkey in the net at arm's length.

"You want us to flag Rikku to come get her monkey before you go? We have communication links, if she's wearing it," Brother offered.

"Nope! You never saw us. This never happened," Gippal called over his shoulder as he and Tidus took the lift down to the engine room. In the engine room, Gippal went straight to the refurbished hover bike and threw off the dust cover. "Are they out there?" he asked of Tidus.

Tidus went down the ramp of the airship and stood outside to scan the area. "Coast is clear!"

Gippal allowed himself a smug laugh and pushed the bike down the ramp onto the beach. Climbing onto it, he looked over the controls and began to charge the engine. "Hop on and hang on. It's going to be a bumpy ride."

Tidus grinned and secured the monkey's net to a bar behind the seat, then he climbed onto the bike behind Gippal.

The Ghiki monkey looked at the shiny chrome things within reach and tapped a finger at them wondering how to get them through the net. But when it suddenly found itself horizontal and speeding over the terrain, it let out a scream of surprise and hung onto the net for dear life.

Gippal drove the bike straight over the water toward the smaller rocks and islands, hitting booster engines to help the bike skip and hop over the waves. He passed Kilika and skirted Luca until he could jump up the terrain at diced angles to make it to the Mi'ihen Highroad. Once he hit that road, he shot forward like a bullet in a cloud of dust. Tidus loved every minute of it. Ghiki did not.

Kicking the bike into the highest speed it could handle, and taking as many shortcuts as he could possibly remember, Gippal made it all the way to the Calm Lands. He finally brought the bike to a stop outside of Clasko's Chocobo Ranch.

"That was so awsome!" Tidus beamed as he untied the petrified monkey from the back of the bike. "Can you show me how to do some of that?"

"That's why I brought it here. Wide open spaces - lots of room to learn how to handle a hover bike and test out one that has new tricks. Rikku's idea." He gave a clipped, sarcastic smile to Tidus, who laughed and followed him inside. "Yo, Clasko!" he called upon entry.

Chocobo chirps filled the back area of what used to be a mini-dungeon. Clasko came running to see who had called. "Oh! Sir Tidus! Gippal!"

Gippal looked over his shoulder at the blitz player and lifted a thin, straight brow over his black eye patch. "_Sir_?"

Tidus shrugged in embarrassment. This was Clasko; there was no accounting for the man's quirkiness, though he suspected it had something to do with the fact that he had survived being Yuna's guardian on the pilgrimage.

"Need a chocobo to ride or fetch something? Or did you just come for supplies?"

"Actually, we were wondering if you had room for a monkey." Tidus raised the net before them and grinned.

Ghiki sighed with overwhelming relief that the wild ride was finally over.

))((

Yuna, Rikku, and Paine searched Besaid Island into the night, long after moon rise, for the missing young men. Exhausted and worried, when they still couldn't find them, they finally decided they needed to tell the rest of the Gullwings crew that they feared the worst for their two friends.

"Missing?" Cid set his coffee down on the counter at the bar. "What do you mean they're missing? They're not missing. Gippal brought back the specs and took Tidus with him to give the refurbished hover bike a test run. Didn't you notice it was gone from taking up half of the engine room this afternoon?"

Paine's brow twitched. "You mean, they've been testing that bike all day?"

Rikku clenched her teeth. "And they didn't tell us?"

"Why didn't you tell us?" Yuna asked in dismay.

"Nobody asked." Cid shrugged and drank his coffee.

Rikku let out a noise that sounded like a cross between a growl and a scream, but as she quieted, they could all hear the hum of a hover bike arriving on the beach. The three women exchanged glances and ran out of the cabin to crowd into the lift and descend. Sure enough, the hover bike was missing from the back of the engine room, and none of them had noticed it. Racing down the ramp to the beach, they stared in disbelief as the bike skimmed the waves and hit the beach in a spray of sand before coming to a complete stop on the ground in front of the Celsius.

"Hellllloooo, Ladies." Gippal grinned, getting off of the refurbished bike. "Did you miss us?"

Yuna ran straight to Tidus to wrap him in a hug that nearly cut off his circulation. "Don't ever leave like that without telling me. I thought ... I thought you had ..." She sniffled and tried not to let her worry turn into tears.

Tidus's wide grin quickly faded when he saw how upset she was. He returned her hug, but then stepped back at arm's length to speak to her. "I didn't realize you'd be worried. I won't leave without fair warning next time, okay?"

She nodded, smiled, and wiped at the moisture in her eyes, glad to see that he and Gippal were okay.

"Where have you been all day?" Rikku fussed. "You couldn't let someone know you were leaving for a joy ride? Where's my Ghiki?"

"Oh, but we _did_ let someone know. We just didn't let _you_ know. Is there a reason that should worry you?" Gippal placed his fists on his hips and leaned directly into her face, waiting for her confession to the scheme.

"Um, ... no." Rikku offered her best innocent expression. "But ... where's my monkey?"

Gippal reached into his utility belt and pulled out a fluff of white fur.

Rikku gasped in horror and delicately took the puffball from him. "Ghiki!" she squeaked. "What did you do to my Ghiki?"

"We caught him in a net and took him to the Calm Lands. If you want him back, you'll have to do a favor for Clasko." Tidus proudly leaned against the seat of the bike behind him.

Rikku drew back, wrinkling her nose. "Clasko?"

"Clasko was glad to take him off of our hands until you come to ..." Tidus feigned forgetfulness and looked to Gippal for confirmation. "What was it he suggested that she could do? Clean stalls?"

"Chocobo Pooper Scooper Pro to Go." Gippal wore an equally pleased smug grin.

Rikku's mouth dropped wide open. "I have to scoop out Clasko's stupid chocobo pens before I can get my monkey back?" She was outraged. "_Ruf luimt oui tu cusadrehk mega dryd du so Ghiki? Uv ymm dra hanja! Ymm fa fana dnoehk du kad oui kioc du tu fyc dymg du uha yhudran_!"

Gippal glanced over his shoulder at Tidus, giving him an exasperated sigh, then reached into his pocket and drew out a small round grenade. Without hesitation, he pulled the pin and gave it a toss to the ground at Rikku's feet. A powdery puff of magical smoke swirled around her, but otherwise left her completely unharmed. When she opened her mouth to continue fussing, though, not a single sound came out. "I love hush grenades," he commented to Tidus with a chuckle.

Rikku stamped her foot, shouted something completely inaudible, stomped again, and then stormed away in a huff.

Yuna giggled. "That's not very nice, you know."

"And sending us after that demonic monkey was?" Gippal snorted. "Eh, she'll be fine. Brother and I used to toss those things at her all the time when we were kids. She's like a little sister to me, so I gotta pick on her sometimes." He chuckled.

Paine couldn't help but smile. Should she say anything? "Actually, ... it was mostly my idea, not Rikku's. I know it was dangerous, but I figured if you had to watch each other's backs, you'd eventually work it out."

"Another Cloister of Trials for the guardian, right?" Tidus lightly smiled.

"Something like that." She shrugged.

"Well, your stupid plan actually worked."

Gippal, having heard Paine's confession, but knowing she had been a part of it all along, casually stepped forward and hooked an arm around her neck. He pulled another hush grenade from his pocket and appeared to be contemplating it. "I guess you deserve one of these, too, but you hardly ever say anything to begin with."

Paine calmly waited for him to pronounce his judgment on her. From the corner of her eye, she caught Yuna giving her a small smile, but thankfully her friend said nothing.

"Ah, I guess I'll let it slide this time. Even if you did lead us into a _den of death_, at least you were more worried about _us_ than the stupid monkey." Gippal gave her a friendly peck on the cheek, then backed away to point a finger at her. "I'm onto you now, though. Have to sleep with my last eye open around you, now that Rikku's tainted your thinking. Next time, you won't get off so easy."

As Paine's face warmed slightly, she allowed herself a secretive smile. "Well, sorry about putting you up to that, but Tidus needs some Gippalish help with Baralai and Nooj."

"Yeah, I know," Gippal agreed with a smirk. "They're going to have a hard time getting past the whole Shuyin thing because of what happened to them. I can't really say I'd feel any different if it had been me. But, bring him to the next meeting, and we'll see how many Gippalish things we can throw at them to knock some sense into their heads. If talking to them doesn't work, we can always use Dr. P's plan A, and lock them up with Demon Monkey, right? Well, I'd better go. Catch you guys later. Oh, and tell Shinra to bring those new printouts to the temple tomorrow!" He waved goodnight and jogged back to his own hover craft to go home.

Paine waved, then gave Tidus a light hit to the chest. "Let me know if you want that training." She turned to jog back to the airship.

"Can I wear my blitz guards next time?" he called to her, receiving only a glance over her shoulder in answer. "I guess that means 'no'."

))((

Tidus winced at the thought of having to fight Paine without some kind of protection. "Man, she's going to crack me like an egg," he complained.

"Paine's an excellent trainer." Yuna faced Tidus and smiled at the shine in his eyes. "And, in spite of everything, you look like you had fun."

"Oh, it was unbelievable! Gippal is absolutely insane on a hover bike! But he showed me the basics of how to ride one, and let me help run some of the tests for speed boosters. I learned how to do a three-sixty horizontal loop and skid out of a dive. Did you know you could make them skip on water? Then, there was this really deep ditch that we got it stuck in, so the only way to get it out was to put it in reverse and floor it. It shot backwards and nearly -" He realized Yuna was chuckling at him. "What?"

"Looks like I might need one of those hush grenades for you, too. But I'm glad you had fun." She rose on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him.

He smiled warmly after returning the kiss. "Mmm, well this is kinda fun, too."

"_Kinda_?" Yuna drew back in offense.

"Nh, okay more than kinda." He place his hands over her silken hair and smoothed it to rest his forehead against hers. "Want to take a walk?"

She smirked at the suave way he had said it. "It's late. You're probably really tired already."

"Want to take a walk?" he repeated, ignoring her excuse.

"The others might worry."

He looked toward the airship and saw Rikku's head duck out of sight from the widow panel of the loft. "I think they'll figure it out on their own."

Yuna giggled lightly at her cousin's nosy nature. Her eyes met his once more, and as she gazed at him under the moonlight, she waited for the familiar flip-flop in her heart to pass when he smiled back at her. She thought of Paine's confession and, for a moment, felt insecure enough to want to ask if he had noticed how he had touched the warrior's heart that morning with his laughter. But she decided that Paine was right. He probably had not noticed. She put a hand to her own flushed cheek. "Would you like to take a walk?"

He grinned in response. "I thought you'd never ask."


	10. Chapter 10: Above and Below

Chapter 10: Above and Below

Tidus glanced up to the window again, and this time it was empty. Taking Yuna's hand, he coaxed her to follow him up the beach and down the right-hand fork in the road that led to a high cliff overlooking the clear bay.

"Hmm, short walk with a dead end," she said with amusement. "Interesting choice."

Tidus acted shocked at the tone in her voice. "Are you accusing me of ulterior motives?"

Her eyes shifted to regard him with even more amusement, then followed him with that same look of silent suspicion as he sat down cross-legged in the grass. "All right then, ... why did you bring me here?" She sat down beside him, both of them facing the ocean.

He shrugged. "I just like it here. It's calm. Plus, all those white flowers back there open up at night and it smells really good."

Yuna remained skeptically amused as she breathed in the fragrance of the night blooms and listened to the crickets chirping. "I didn't realize you came out here at night just to enjoy the scenery."

"Well, then, there's a lot about me you don't know," he answered in a smug tone.

Yuna smiled. "I'm sorry I doubted you."

"You should be. 'Cause now I don't want to make out with someone who doubted me." Tidus lay down in the cool grass and rested his hands behind his head.

"Ah-ha, so you did have ulterior motives." She plucked a piece of grass and threw it at him.

He chuckled and gave her a sly expression. "Yeah, okay. But this is nice, too." He lifted his eyes to the countless stars overhead. "When I lived in Zanarkand, there was a small hill on the waterfront across from the stadium near where I lived. I used to sit there and cool off after late night practices and games, if I wasn't going out afterward. I couldn't sleep being all wound up like that, you know? Lying under the stars for a short time really did the trick."

Yuna watched his profile as he gazed at the sky in wonder. Then, she smiled to herself, turned around to face the opposite direction and lay down behind him, resting her head on his shoulder, her temple against his cheek.

"Okay, what'd you do that for? Now, you're upside down. I can't kiss you upside down. You were supposed to want to hear about the ulterior motives."

She giggled as he gave the top of her head a kiss to prove his point. "Why should I? You didn't want to make out with me anyway, since I doubted your intentions. And it's been a long time since I've done this, ... just looking at the stars." There was a long silence as she considered the stars and planets near Spira that she knew a little about, but then her mind drew back to another world that no one knew about until only recently. "Do you suppose we could see Earth from here?"

"Maybe. Do you have anything like a telescope?"

"What's a ... tele-scope?"

Tidus smiled. He sometimes forgot about the differences between their worlds. "It's a large tube with a lens that allows you to see the stars up close. The bigger and more powerful the telescope, the further away you can see."

"Like binoculars, only bigger?"

"Yep."

"I don't think we have anything like that, ... unless the Al Bhed do."

Spira of the past was a highly technological blend of machina and a little magic, but because of Sin and Yevon, Spira of the present was just the opposite, with only the Al Bhed still trying to rediscover the technology of the past. For a thousand years, Spirans found themselves in a constant state of picking up the pieces to rebuild a small, primitive society from the ruins of destroyed larger ones with what oral tradition magic they could hold onto. It made for a somewhat cautious atmosphere, but life was more simple this way.

With a sigh of disappointment, Yuna raised a hand to his head and caught some strands of his hair between her fingers, absently drawing them away from his face. "I'd like to see it someday, you know? Just because ... It's kind of hard to believe Spira came from another world. I can't help but wonder what it looked like, or if it's still there."

"Probably no way of knowing now. That was a thousand years ago." Tidus yawned at her soothing gesture. "I remember having history lessons on the Founders, but the teacher was such a drip that I can't remember anything he said about them. Come to think of it, maybe I was the drip, since I kept falling asleep in lectures. Guess I should have studied harder, instead of trying to balance my pen on my nose to stay awake. History teachers have no sense of humor." Tidus turned his nose toward her and closed his eyes.

"You studied the Founders in your lessons, back in Zanarkand?"

"Mh. Just don't remember anything," he lazily muttered.

Yuna's two-colored eyes widened at the possibilities. He was a link not only to Zanarkand's history, but to all of Spira's history as well. "Were there pictures? Did you see what it looked like?"

"Mh."

"Did the people look like us? I mean, I'm sure they did, but ... doesn't that make you curious about things like how they dressed and what they ate? I wonder if they'd still be mad at us for the war, ... or for running away. It would be fun to try to find it, don't you think?" His breath was warm against her neck, soft and rhythmic. When he didn't answer her after a long minute, Yuna lifted her head to see his face better. He had fallen asleep.

She laughed lightly remembering that he was like this on their pilgrimage. He buzzed non-stop all day, but when he finally crashed, his sleep was instant and unshakable. Even on the hardest rock, he had amused everyone how he could sleep like a log. Nobody else would have been able to put up with that engine room floor for two weeks without complaint like he had. She smiled and gently kissed him from her upside down position, then lay her head back down on his shoulder and nuzzled into his hair and neck. Still, she blinked up at the stars and wondered.

))((

Dawn rose over the ocean to filter the last of its hazy shades of pink and orange on the cliffs of Besaid before Yuna became aware of her senses again. The air was cool and moist, birds were chirping instead of crickets, and the scent of grilled fish and rice wafted toward her on a breeze from the village huts preparing breakfast. She chilled slightly and curled toward the young man next to her, in an effort to share his warmth, as she had done periodically throughout the night. His heartbeat nearly lulled her back into a dreamy sleep, but she suddenly remembered where she was. Her eyes opened wide.

"Oh no. This is not good." Raising herself on one elbow in the grass, she gave his shoulder a shake. "Tidus, we need to get back to the airship before they come looking for us. They might be worried since we were gone all night."

He blinked his eyes open and squinted at Yuna's face for a blurry moment. Then, he rolled toward her, wrapping an arm over her waist and burying his face into her chest to keep sleeping.

Yuna felt herself flush in embarrassment. "You're being rude." She couldn't tell if he was really asleep, or just pretending now. Either way, he ignored her scolding, but she was unable to stay mad at him for very long. She cradled his head for a moment and kissed his temple. But then, she sat up and gave his shoulder a rougher shake. "Tidus!" she hissed. "Tidus, please wake up!"

"Mnnh," he grumbled and shielded his face from the sun's increasing rays of light.

"We have to go back to the ship now. Come on." She stood and grabbed his arm.

Sleepily, he pushed himself to his feet, took her hand, and followed her back down the road to the beach. He was too groggy to argue most of the way back, becoming more alert only once they were close to the airship. They crept on board and up to the cabin not knowing what time it was, but they hoped they timed their entrance early enough that everyone else would still in bed. No such luck - the entire crew was sitting at the bar eating breakfast, and all eyes turned on them as the cabin doors opened to reveal their presence.

Buddy looked up from his eggs and toast. "Bus-ted."

Brother's eyes narrowed on Tidus and a noise rose from this throat that sounded very much like a growl.

Cid loudly cleared his throat and gave a fatherly frown, first to his errant niece, then to her wayward boyfriend.

"Ohohhh." Rikku giggled with a sly expression and stood to hand Barkeep her dirty dishes. "Well, I guess I won't be asking you where you two have been all night."

Yuna gave her most innocent smile. "I'm so sorry if we worried you. We were star-gazing and fell asleep."

Paine smirked and drank her juice. "Don't you hate it when that happens?"

"Good thing we didn't come looking for you or we might have seen more than stars, right?" Rikku giggled again and gave Yuna an obvious wink.

Shinra looked up from his cereal and shook his head. "Gross." He went back to eating.

Yuna pouted that no one believed her and headed up the stairs to the loft without looking anyone else in the eye.

Tidus took it in stride and shrugged at everyone's assumptions as he followed her up to the loft.

"They don't believe us," she complained as she went to her dresser mirror as gazed at herself for a moment. Bits of grass littered her bedraggled hair, and the ribbon holding her long braid was coming loose. "Oh, ... no wonder." She sighed at the growing evidence stacked against her, picked out the pieces of grass, and began to unwind the ribbon.

"Does it matter?" He sat down on his futon and ran his fingers through his own shaggy, golden mane, not caring what the result looked like.

Yuna set the long, red ribbon on her dresser and picked up her brush to begin unweaving the braid. She gave an embarrassed laugh for getting flustered about it and continued trying to brush her hair. "I guess not." Her fingers and brush worked quickly to undo the damage done by smoothing the whole thing into a brown, wavy cascade.

"I don't think I've ever seen your hair out of that braid before," Tidus commented, kinda stunned to see how long it really was.

"Tidus!" Rikku called from downstairs.

With a sigh, he moved to stand behind her, pausing to smooth a hand over her tresses. "Stop messing with it. You're beautiful." He kissed the back of her head and headed back down the stairs.

))((

Rikku met him at the bottom of the stairs, stacking several empty laundry baskets in front of him and placing a filled one in his arms. "Since you're making me go to the Calm Lands to clean out Clasko's chocobo pens, you're doing my chores today. The washer is at the back of the shower behind that sliding door. Make sure all the garment grids are emptied and included. Keep everyone's loads separate. Oh, and remember to sort the colors because Paine and Buddy can get really mad at you if you dye their underwear pink. Do you know how to sort laundry colors?"

"It's not the first time in my life I've had to wash clothes, Rikku." His eyes fell on the basket in his arms and spotted a string bikini bra and bottom on top. With intrigued amusement, he hooked one of the strings on a finger and gave it a small spin.

Rikku scowled and snatched the item from him. "Then, stop being perverted about it."

"I wasn't being perverted - there's nothing to wash. It's a string," he jokingly argued.

"I don't wave your underwear around when I wash it." She gave him a pressed look of warning and took the laundry basket back to set it with the others.

"That's because I don't let you do my laundry," he reminded her.

"Well, I wouldn't if I did," she insisted.

"Well, I don't have the month-long supply of clothing that you guys do, so you'll never get that chance," he returned.

"Don't be so sure of it." She frowned and pointed a finger at him.

Tidus drew back wondering what she meant by that.

"Sounds like you're in for a wedgie," Brother commented as he listened in on their argument.

"Nah, she'll steal his underwear and dye it pink." Paine placed her bet.

"Or cut holes in it." Buddy snickered.

"Thanks. You guys are a big help." Tidus frowned at them.

"Well, I _should_ do something like that to you." Rikku poked him in the chest. "You took Ghiki to the Calm Lands and made us look all over the place for you. Now you're making me have to go scoop bird poop!"

"Because your freaky monkey led me to a couple of coeurl reginas!"

Rikku turned her head with a crisp _hmpf_ nearly smacking him in the face with her long braids. She waited for Paine to finish her juice and grabbed her wrist as soon as she set the glass down. "I was only trying to help, but fine. Be that way. We're outta here."

Paine resisted the smaller girl's pull. "Wait a minute. _We_?"

"If I have to go scoop chocobo poop, then _you_ have to help me."

Paine shook her head and offered her excuse. "I have guard duty at the temple tonight - the spheres."

"Then, we'll work faster so we can be back in time. You got me in trouble for this - it was your idea to steal something from Gippal."

Paine groaned, but Rikku was right. And with her on a war path, there would be no peace. The warrior stood and allowed herself to be dragged to the door by the small thief.

"It's good discipline." Tidus gave her an obnoxious grin as he took her seat at the bar.

Paine shot him a daggered look for rubbing her own words in her face, considering the nature of the task she was about to do was a lot worse than Brother's chore charts.

Yuna smiled and waved as she came back down the stairs to get some breakfast. "I'll do the laundry if you want, so you can catch up on practice for the next game," she offered to Tidus.

"I don't mind doing it." He grinned mischievously. "Gives me a reason to string Rikku's bikinis all over the place for when she returns."

Yuna laughed. "You're asking for real payback if you do something like. Besides, I'm more used to the routine than you are. _You_ need to win another game for Besaid. It will help counter all those nasty rumors about you being unsent." She tapped his nose, giggling at the way it made him blink as he put an arm around her waist and drew her near.

"Yuna, what time is your meeting today?" Buddy asked. "Is Tidus going with you this time? If not, we could use his help setting up under the temple. We're going to start work on Spira's core today with the Machine Faction."

Yuna suddenly froze and gasped. "The meeting! I forgot all about the meeting this morning! I've still got grass in my hair, and I've got to rebraid it, and I have to find something to wear!" She ran to the shower and slammed the door shut behind her.

Tidus smirked at her panic. "Yeah, I'll be going. Gippal's going to talk to Baralai and Nooj for me, so I should be there." He picked up the list of breakfast items Barkeep had in-stock, when a strong arm draped itself across his shoulders. He looked to his right to find Cid wearing a very authoritative expression while he cleared his throat again.

"Son, it's time you and me had a _talk_."

Tidus's smirk fell. Surely Cid wasn't serious. "Um, ... I already had that talk. Twice."

"Not about my niece you didn't." Cid frowned.

"Aaaaaahhhh!" Brother covered his ears and stood. "I don't want to hear this about Yuna!" He pointed an accusatory finger at Tidus. "Yuna is an angel! I told you not to think such things about her! Now look what you've done! You see?"

"Stop your caterwaullering and get out of here, so I can do this right!" Cid scowled at his son.

Tidus's brows rose. "But I didn't -"

"I'm not listening! I'm not listening! I'm not listening!" Brother covered his ears again and quickly left the cabin.

Buddy chuckled to himself, shoved his empty plate aside, and stood as well. "Guess that's my cue to go keep an eye on him before he hurts himself." He gave Tidus a sympathetic pat on the back for having to listen to Cid's _talk_, then walked away.

The door to the shower opened with a slam against the wall behind it, and Yuna scurried out in a big towel as she hurried up the stairs to the loft.

"Get back in there and put some clothes on!" Cid snapped at her. "You can't run around here like that!"

"I forgot my brush and clothes! If the garment grid goes in the laundry, then I need something else for today!" Yuna snatched the brush and the ribbon off of her dresser. She dug into a drawer and hurriedly pieced together something that would look decent for the formal meeting. Then she ran back down to the shower again, trying not to slip on the trail of water droplets her long hair was leaving on the floor behind her.

"And don't you come back out again until I say so!" Cid fussed at the door as it slammed shut behind her. He then turned to see that only Shinra and Barkeep remained. "Uh, you're probably a little too young for this, so ... scram," Cid warned the child.

"Don't worry. I already know about it. I know everything." Shinra's big eyes blinked at Tidus from behind his goggles, but he made no move to leave.

Barkeep merely leaned on the counter and tapped his froggy fingers against his chin, waiting.

Cid accepted that. He turned back to Tidus and cleared his throat once more. "Now then, boy, where was I?"

Tidus sighed, groaned, and drooped forward with his cheek to the counter. Jecht, Auron, and now Cid, ... But he knew there was no way to get out of this and decided not to argue with the man while he was fulfilling his "fatherly" duties to Yuna.

))((

The Machine Faction moved into the bottom level of the temple in Bevelle and completely took over the place. Al Bhed engineers and mechanics wandered here and there carrying equipment down into the lower reaches of the dungeons, while Gippal looked over his crisp, new printouts of Shinra's diagrams and directed various groups to certain stations, according to what jobs they needed to do.

"Gippal!" With her hair somewhat damp, but neatly braided back into her trademark ribbon, Yuna cheerfully waved as she and the rest of the Gullwings arrived on the scene.

"Hey, I was just about to finish here and head upstairs." He passed the printout to Shinra. "Think you guys could handle taking over for a little while?"

"Sure thing." The boy-genius accepted his printouts back. Brother, Buddy, and Cid brought in their own equipment for diagnostics and repairs.

"I've got everyone setting up their stations below the main lift, but apparently some kind of other dungeon has been found in a hidden passage in one of the back rooms there. Since we don't know what's in there, if you could help them check it out and take an analysis that would be great."

"Back room? Oh, but - " Yuna stopped herself from saying any more, but she wondered if it was the same hidden place. If so, she wasn't so sure the Machine Faction should be messing with it. A feeling of dread came over her whenever she remembered the Via Infinito.


	11. Chapter 11: Play It Again

Chapter 11: Play It Again

Gippal's brows rose as he waited for Yuna to finish what she was going to say.

"Well, it's just that, right before we found Vegnagun, some children found a passage to a hidden dungeon in one of the back rooms. If it's the same one, it's very dangerous. It had fiends - not just ordinary fiends - large, powerful fiends. I wouldn't go in there, unless you absolutely have to."

"Point taken. But we should still try to check it out, so that we don't overlook anything." Gippal rubbed a finger over his chin and turned to Shinra. "Maybe send someone into the entrance area only."

Shinra nodded in acceptance of his assignment. "If it's that dangerous, then maybe we could send down a machina scout instead of a person."

"I like the way you think," Gippal agreed. "A big ol' scout bumping around down there would probably draw too much attention, though. Use, maybe, an S-grade watcher, since Yuna says it's a pretty tough environment. We're not looking for trouble - just looking for cables and circuits."

"The main AI areas seem to be at the core of the Farplane and at the site where that large pump was located. So, if we miss something down this way, we'll probably run up against the other end of it there. Then, we can come back here for a more detailed look." Buddy checked his equipment. "That's where I'm headed. See you guys later." He shouldered his things and headed for the lift, taking it down under the temple.

Tidus watched a couple of soldier machina clink and waddle past him as they carried supplies from one place to another. He was still wary of the things after having been attacked by them so frequently two years ago. Seeing them freely roaming a temple now was just ... bizarre.

"We should go now." Yuna reminded Gippal of the time.

"I'm on it. Where's Rikku and Paine?" He flashed her a smug grin, as he left his operations and headed to the lift with them.

Tidus chuckled. "They're visiting Clasko today."

"Paine went with her? What'd she go and do that for? I didn't mean for her to have to do that, when it's Rikku's monkey. Gonna have to teach Dr. P how to slack off and make up excuses once in a while." He shook his head.

Yuna allowed herself a secret smile. "Find a way to make her laugh," she suggested.

As they left the lift for the upper balcony, they suddenly found themselves confronted by armed guards instead of priests. "Not him." The guard indicated Tidus.

Gippal looked over his shoulder to him. "What'd I tell you - spear up the nose. Just hang around downstairs, or something, until we can come and get you." He put a hand to Yuna's back to encourage her to continue forward.

Tidus nodded and backed up onto the lift as the guards watched him with suspicion. When the lift descended, he sighed and returned to Shinra and Brother. "Well, they won't let me in. Got any jobs I could do?"

))((

Baralai stood and followed the table's length to Yuna's seat. Leaning toward her, he spoke to her ear alone. "Lady Yuna, I believe you have an error to correct." He placed the guard roster before her, then returned to his place at the head of the table.

Yuna stared at the list of names and descriptions she had written down. She was miffed that Tidus had been barred from entering the room, and this only added insult to injury. Picking up the pen, she stared at the one name that Baralai wanted removed from the roster. Then, she giggled to herself and began writing some more.

"Last week, our negotiations were abruptly broken off before a final treaty was signed." Baralai situated himself in his chair, looked around the table, and consulted a log book of notes. He read off a summary of the things they agreed upon at the last meeting. Then, he looked up from his notes for a moment to see if there was any disagreement. When there was none, he continued reading. "It was decided that the building design should be done, if possible, in the architectural style of Zanarkand before the Machina War destroyed it. And, it was suggested that we use spheres to reconstruct a model of one of the building's exteriors. So, the question we had to adjourn early on was how to go about gathering information for the interior."

Gippal leaned back in his chair and crossed an ankle over his knee. "We need an expert on Zanarkand. I nominate Yuna's guardian, Tidus." He gave Yuna a small wink.

Yuna gave him a small smile of gratitude in return.

From his side of the table, Nooj looked up from his notes with a cool expression. "Don't you mean Shuyin?"

Baralai's gaze shifted toward Nooj. "He told me Shuyin was his brother."

Gippal sighed. "Look, I've spent some time with him, all right? He's a pretty decent guy, regardless of whatever state of existence he's in, or what name he goes by. What's the worst that could happen? Do you honestly think he'll find another Vegnagun buried in Zanarkand somewhere?"

"It's not a replay of Vegnagun that concerns me," Baralai spoke. "What concerns me is that the unsent should be sent, or we risk being at the mercy of spirits that refuse to leave this world in the care of the living - _again_. How many more unsent are we going to let roam and rule Spira before we decide that enough is enough?"

"He is not unsent." Yuna was growing annoyed at hearing people say that about him.

"You were able to send him to the Farplane when you sent the Fayth, were you not?"

"Because he was part of their dream. Not because he was dead."

"The dream was made of the memories of the dead." Baralai remained firm in his argument. "If he was among those memories, then he was among the dead that once inhabited Zanarkand. If he is Shuyin's brother, as he himself said, then he lived over a thousand years ago. Either way, he is unsent."

Yuna clenched her fists in frustration. "So, his personality and knowledge have nothing to do with this, do they? He's being barred because he's different from us. Is that it?"

Nooj was annoyed that this topic was even brought back to the table. "He's not just different, Yuna. He's a spirit. You have no idea what it's like to lose control of your own mind and body to something crawling under your skin." The meyvn of the Youth League angered, but remained calm.

"Yes, I do!" she quickly answered. "Lenne's spirit resided in my dress sphere, and on occasion, her emotions would surface above my own. I felt them as strongly as she did."

"Lenne wasn't a homicidal sociopath," Nooj snapped. "It's a very different experience to have someone whispering in your ear to kill people, and to know that you're powerless to stop yourself from doing it!"

"Then, you agree that those two spirits were very different, and one could be trusted more than the other! That's means even among spirits each one is unique! Tidus should not be accused of Shuyin's deeds!"

"You know," Gippal spoke up again, interrupting the argument. "Two-thirds of this entire planet, for a thousand years, bowed down to the manipulation of a real, live, human man who drained innocent people in order to turn himself into a monster, so he could seek revenge on those who hurt him. His intentions may have been defensive at first, but he didn't stop at those who actually attacked him - he exacted that revenge for a thousand years on even more innocent lives." Gippal paused to let his words carry weight. "Look, I can understand your fears that an unsent spirit in that same position could employ an even more terrible reign of terror. But if we're capable of doing this to ourselves, ... how is a spirit really any different from you or me? Living, dead, undead, unreal ... It doesn't matter. It's easy for anyone to abuse power once they get their hands on it. Didn't we learn that about ourselves in our race to get Vegnagun? The next Shuyin, the next Maester Seymour, or the next Yu Yevon could just as easily come from New Yevon, the Youth League, or the Machine Faction, as it could from that guy downstairs."

Yuna looked to Gippal with an unspoken gratitude for standing up for Tidus in this manner.

Kimahri, who had been silent all this time, watching and listening, finally shifted his position where he stood. "Tidus should join commission to build Zanarkand library."

"Seconded." Gippal picked up his pen and absently turned it end-over-end.

"Third," Yuna voted. Her eyes went to Tromell Guado. If he voted against Tidus, it would be a stalemate.

Tromell looked down at his own hands and cleared his throat before solemnly speaking. "I first met your young guardian when I was serving under Maester Seymour. I've considered my own mistakes in helping things escalate the way that they did, and I remember how hopeless I felt when guado had to leave their homes for their shameful participation in Seymour's designs. If the living can do this to themselves, why fear the spirits of the dead?" He drew a breath before continuing to share his thoughts on the matter. "An old man named Maechen once used to explain how aeons are summoned by saying, 'The dreams of the Fayth reach through the spirit of the summoner. And that which is unreal becomes real for all to see.' I don't believe your guardian is among the dead, as much as he is simply not real for all to see until he has been summoned. That doesn't make him harmless, but his nature is probably similar to that of an aeon, only wishing to protect his summoner." Tromell lifted his saddened eyes. "Lady Yuna, ... please, go ask your young man to join us."

Yuna sighed to herself with relief, stood, and started toward the door, but then she stopped and faced Nooj and Baralai. "I won't invite him without your consent."

"It's a majority in his favor, Yuna. What more do you want?" Nooj answered in annoyance as he rubbed a hand over his tired eyes, beneath his glasses. This meeting had barely started and it had already fallen apart.

"Your cooperation, if not your support. A fair chance to prove he can be an asset."

Baralai crooked a finger over his lips as he rested his elbow on the desk and stared at Gippal, and then Yuna, with an unhappy frown. "I will go along with this only on the condition that you allow us to take immediate action to resolve any trouble that may come of it. Until then, you may bring him in."

Knowing that was probably the best offer she could get, Yuna hurried out the door to the lift. "Tidus!" she called out, leaning over the railing as it lowered her to the temple's ground floor. She jumped off of the lift before it could even finish its track. "You're in! Gippal convinced them to let you back in!"

Tidus was watching Brother manipulate the remote controls of an S-watcher they had lowered into the back room's dark passage, when he heard his name called. "I'll owe him one," he answered rather absently.

Yuna looked at his face and then Brother's. She couldn't really see Shinra's face because of his ever-present mask, but the other guys looked concerned and distracted, so she imagined Shinra was, too. "Is something wrong?"

"See for yourself." Brother passed the monitor into her hands and then gave an exaggerated, creepy shudder.

The S-watcher's beeping and whirring noises could be heard as it flew slowly along a smooth-walled tunnel, much like that of the one leading to the Farplane. The passage was dimly lit in some places and rather dark in others. Every corner of the maze seemed to have at least one large fiend fading in and out of its miserable existence between life and death.

Yuna looked up at them, unsure of what was so confusing about this. "But ... I told you this is what you'd find down there."

"You don't see her? She must have moved." Brother leaned over her shoulder and made a few adjustments.

"Her?" Yuna was about to ask him to clarify when she saw a young woman with long black hair. She looked terribly sad and frightened. The young woman was crying and running to the walls, banging on them with her fists, looking for a way out. She screamed and grabbed her head as if madness were taking her. Then she fell to her knees and sobbed. Alarmed, Yuna stood and started to head for the dungeon. "We have to get her out of there!"

"Wait." Tidus caught her wrist and pulled her back. "Watch."

After a moment, the woman stood and ran again. A large elder drake stepped out from around the corner to confront her. She screamed and then burst into a flare of pyreflies.

Yuna gasped. "She's ... unsent? Why didn't we see her in there before?"

"Because she moves between levels." Brother took back the monitor. "We've found her on five levels so far. Each one, she falls through from a hole above. Each one, she goes through same thing trying to escape. Then, something hits her and she disappears, only to show up on a different level."

"Infinitely falling through every level in some kind of cycle?" Yuna couldn't bear the thought of it. She shuddered at the memory of trying to outrun the elder drake herself. "I wonder who she was."

"Well, so far we haven't found any machina that looks like it connects to the Farplane, unless there's something at the bottom, … wherever that is." Brother tried to find her again with his watcher.

"Maybe Baralai would know who she is?" Yuna suggested.

"We've asked around. The priests didn't even know this place was here, much less anything about how all those unsent souls got down there," Shinra explained.

"But Baralai is the temple praetor. He might know something the other priests don't." That reminded Yuna of the meeting she was missing. "I'll try to remember to ask him about it later. First things first, though." Putting a smile back on her face, she took Tidus's hand and led him to the lift.

))((

Tidus followed her back into the conference room and looked at each one of the faces around the table. It was pretty easy to guess who had supported him, and who had not.

"Well, by majority vote, you're in," Baralai spoke to Tidus, still holding his reserve. "You will be in charge of any information we need to collect regarding Zanarakand on this project. You can start by helping Kimahri recover whatever he needs for the structure."

"Kimahri need spheres put together to make model. Also need image of Tidus's memory inside buildings."

Tidus hesitantly offered his first idea to the group. "Well, my memories aren't very good, but ... I know of one sphere that would probably make a very good model. Two years ago when I first visited Guadosalam, Seymour had a sphere that projected scenes of Zanarkand in life-size format."

"I remember that sphere!" Yuna was surprised that she had forgotten it. "Kimahri, you remember it don't you? It felt as if we were standing right there in Zanarkand. He showed it to us right before he ... asked me to marry him." She saddened for a moment and looked to Tidus wondering how she could have ever considered ... No, that was in the past. She knew things now that she didn't then.

"Kimahri remember well." The large ronso turned to Tromell. "Do guado still have that sphere?"

"Unfortunately, no. Maester Seymour took his most valued items and hid them before he ... departed. I have no idea where that sphere might be."

"Then the Gullwings will have to find it," Yuna determined. "We'll find Seymour's Zanarkand sphere. Tromell, do you have any of Seymour's things we could look at that might give us clues to where he would hide valuables?"

"There is only what remains in the treasure room in Guadosalam, but you are welcomed to look through it again."

"Oh, that reminds me! I can talk to Tobli while we're there." Yuna faced everyone. "I'd like to do a concert for the opening ceremony. We could fly people in like we did for the Thunder Plains concert, but do it outside of the ruins. Would that be okay?"

Gippal smiled and tapped his pen against his hand. "Sounds good to me."

Tidus met Nooj's mute, unhappy stare from across the table and had to look away. Instead, he watched as Baralai spoke to his adviser about adding this new information to the treaty. He was in, but this clearly wasn't over yet.

))((

Yuna opened the door to Tobli's Entertainment Emporium in Guadosalam and went straight to the front desk to speak with the hypello who worked there. Tidus lingered at the back of the shop, looking around at all the strange and interesting things on the shelves. The hypello went into Tobli's office, and within minutes, the little man with the mouth faster than a bullet came out of his office to greet them.

"Lady Yuna, Lady Yuna, very, very glad to see you again! Have you come to make a purchase, or have you come to talk business? It's been a while since we did business hasn't it? Please, please, step into my office and let's talk." He waddled to the door and pushed it open for her.

Tidus followed Yuna and Tobli into the office at the back and was surprised to see just how much junk the little man had crammed into the tiny space.

"I'd like to do another concert," Yuna spoke the magic words that Tobli wanted to hear.

"Hoo, hoo, hoo! Brilliant! When would you like to do it? Where would you like to have it? Do you have a band, or do you need a band? We can set up anything. Anything at all for you, Lady Yuna." The little man took a seat at his desk.

Tidus could see from where he stood that Tobli's feet didn't even touch the floor. He chuckled, but remained silent, amusing himself by looking at all the entertainment memorabilia around the room. While Yuna laid down the plans and details with the promotion agent, Tidus came across a strange looking instrument beneath a pile of papers and folders stacked in a rather unstable manner. It was long and flat, but rather small, and had keys much like a piano. Quirking a brow of interest, he gently pushed the papers aside and poked a finger at one of the keys. The tone was something like a glass harp. Having found a new toy to amuse himself with, he placed his hands over the entire keyboard and played a couple of random chords. Then, his fingers traced over the keyboard, slowly and carefully picking out a melody.

Yuna and Tobli stopped talking and looked over their shoulders at him, stunned.

Tidus realized the room had become very quiet and looked up to find himself the center of attention. "Was that too loud? Or, ... should I not be messing with this thing?" He accidentally hit the paper stack, and the papers fluttered down to the floor. "Oops! Sorry about that. I got it." He crouched to scoop them back together.

Yuna moved to help pick up the stray papers that were closest to her. "You can play keyboards?"

"Well, ... no. I was just fooling around with it." He laughed lightly and shrugged.

She gazed at him with disbelief at his mysterious new talent. "But, ... that was beautiful."

"I agree, I agree. Those weren't random notes. That was a song - a really, really nice song. What song was it? Do you play professionally? Or would you like to? I can get you good stages for that kind of thing at the Moonflow, you know." Tobli chattered without taking a breath as he accepted the fallen papers from them.

"Can you play it again?" Yuna asked.

"I ... don't know." Tidus passed the last of the papers to Tobli and placed his hands on the keyboard again. He played the same chords and then the same melody, but not as one who had learned the song - more like one who was discovering it. When he finished, he stared at the keyboard for a long moment. Then, he slowly played the song again. "I remember now. There was a keyboard in my bedroom. It had some clutter on it that kept falling off, but I didn't want to clean it up. Most of my room was clutter," he admitted with mild embarrassment. The song began to flow more smoothly as he continued trying to remember it.

Yuna hummed a few bars as the tune began to grow on her. "Do you remember the name of the song? Does it have words?"

"It didn't have words," he automatically answered, as if he was certain of at least that. "But I don't remember what it's called."

"Well, you are apparently a man of many talents," Yuna teasingly complimented, pleased to see a small blush rise to his cheeks for once, instead of hers.

Tidus looked from her back to the keyboard with mixed feelings. He closed his eyes for a moment and tried hard to visualize the keyboard in the rest of the room. The memory was vague, but he knew beyond a doubt it was his personal space. There was a face on the keyboard - no, a holograph frame - one of the many things that kept falling, but he kept it there anyway. The face was too blurry to see, but he knew who it was. His eyes opened in astonishment. "Lenne ..."

"Lenne?" Yuna asked, not understanding.

"The picture on the keyboard - her name was Lenne. I know this song because Shuyin knew it." He faced Yuna with worry. "I've found one of his memories."


	12. Chapter 12: Forgotten Melody

Chapter 12: Forgotten Melody

"Are you sure it's Shuyin's memory?" Yuna asked with concern.

"I'm sure, but I'm having trouble with it. It's like it's buried."

"Shuyin could read music," Yuna quietly admitted, realizing he could be right. "Vegnagun was controlled by a musical keyboard. He was playing it when we confronted him."

But Tidus had declined Shuyin's offer to restore his memories, so that he could keep his own identity. Did this mean …?

Yuna could tell what he was thinking by the look in his eyes. "It's just one memory," she assured him. "And ... it sounds like a sweet one. I really like the song."

"You should consider playing professionally," Tobli spoke. "With some practice, you'd be great in no time. We can set you up. We can get you into Luca. Stage shy? We can put you in a band. You could play with Yuna's band. At the concert!" the little man offered, getting excited at his own ingenuity.

Tidus looked down at the keyboard once more and backed away from it. "I'm just … going to wait outside." Opening the door, he excused himself from the room. Outside of the shop, he sat down by the door and released a sigh to clear his thoughts, but the song was stuck in his head now and would not go away.

Several minutes later when Yuna came out of the shop, she crouched before him with concern. "Feeling any better?"

"Just creeped out, I guess," he admitted.

"Well, come help me look for some clues about Seymour's sphere. Maybe that will help _un-creep_ you." She took his hand, waited for him to stand, and crossed Guadosalam's interior to the storage house.

The treasure room was really nothing more than an empty house full of odds and ends from guado history, but they had to begin their search somewhere. Yuna unlocked the door with the key that Tromell had given her and lit the nearby lantern, placing it on a central shelf. Looking at the long, tedious task ahead of her, she sighed, picked one area to start with, and began to pull out small, wooden boxes.

Tidus moved to the corner and opened a large trunk to sift through. "How can we tell what might have been Seymour's?"

"Well, ... I don't really understand their filing system, but I'm hoping something will look familiar from when he lived in the big mansion."

"Like his big, ugly robes? Or his big, ugly aeon?"

Yuna laughed. "I always thought his robes were kind of nice."

"Oh, please. He only wore those robes to show off his tattoos - like Brother and my old man."

"If we find one of his robes, we could add it to your garment grid and ask Brother about his tattoo artist. I'm sure Seymour's style would look very good on you." She smiled with fake sweetness over her shoulder at him.

Tidus paused to imagine himself in Seymour's robes, but then shuddered. "Okay, that's _not_ helping me un-creep."

She giggled lightly at his adverse reaction, put back the box she held, and looked to the next shelf up. "Could you help me with this one, please? I think it's a little too high for me." She could only scratch at the bottom of it with her nails.

Being slightly taller, he easily grasped the box that was beyond her reach and passed it to her. "Seymour was just all-around creepy," he muttered. "What kind of guy would use his own mother as an aeon?"

"It was her decision to sacrifice herself, not his. It's sad, really. I can't imagine how it must have felt to see his mother become so horribly disfigured and ..." Yuna stopped digging through the box and abruptly turned to face him. "Anima's Chamber of Fayth ..."

He rose on his toes, stretching to the next shelf up, knowing she wouldn't be able to reach those boxes either. "What about it?"

"Seymour's mother was entombed in the Chamber of Fayth in the Baaj temple. Seymour's father exiled him and his mother there because of his being half-human, remember? Seymour probably considered it a sacred place because it was their home and her grave. And since it's under water in ruins, no one is going to go there, except summoners. It's the perfect place to hide valuable items. Don't you think?"

Tidus opened the box, saw nothing of value in it, and closed it again before tilting his chin toward her. "You think he hid the sphere in Baaj?"

"Maybe. I don't know. I mean we really don't have much to go on, do we? Maybe we should ask Buddy to scan Baaj."

Tidus shrugged in acceptance of her theory. "Sounds better than this. Let's go." He set down the box he was holding.

"Wait. Since we're already here, we should go ahead and finish. Baaj is just a guess. If I'm wrong, we'll have to come back and do this again."

"Yeah, I guess so." He sighed and returned to the opened trunk to finish searching it. When that one gave up nothing promising, he closed it and rummaged through another. In it, he was amused to find a robe - not Seymour's robe, but a large, guado robe, all the same. Snickering to himself, he checked over his shoulder to make sure Yuna was preoccupied, then peeled out of his shirt and pulled the heavy robes over himself. After tying the belt tightly at his waist, he pulled the front lapels open so wide that they nearly fell off of his shoulders.

"Do you think maybe those tunnels under the maester's mansion would have anything that belonged to him? Leblanc probably cleaned out anything worthwhile, knowing her, but -" Yuna glanced over her shoulder at him and did a double-take upon seeing what he was wearing. "What are you doing?" she asked with a laugh of surprise.

"_Ti-daa_." He presented himself with a grin. "Got a permanent pen? I can draw on some fake tattoos."

Yuna laughed and planted her hands on her hips. "You're supposed to be helping me look for that sphere. You're not taking this very seriously, you know."

"You're not taking this very seriously, you know," he imitated her higher-pitched voice and her hand-on-hip stance. "You're the one who said this get-up would look nice." He straightened his arms and watched the sleeves drop well beyond his fingertips, so that it looked two sizes too big for him.

Yuna giggled as she drew near. "Well, it _is_ nice," she admitted with amusement and placed her hands on his chest, still relieved when her hands did not pass through him. "But not because of the robe."

"Mmm, well in that case ..." He drew her nearer with a playful smirk.

"Now, now," she lightly scolded with a smile. "We won't get anything accomplished if we start discussing ulterior motives here."

"But since you didn't want to discuss them at the romantic cliff under the moonlight, all I can offer now is a weird closet full of ugly guado stuff."

Yuna laughed, but he could see that her eyes were drawn to the gaping robe that displayed the subtle, sinewy definition that a lifetime of blitz training had given him. She bit her lip in debate, but then smiled again in coy appreciation. "You're very distracting to work with, you know."

"Or maybe _you_ just have a very short attention span," he corrected. Tidus kissed her forehead, then the tip of her nose, and then her cheek below her long, feathery lashes. He started to kiss her lips, but paused for the delicate chills to pass as her fingers slid under the lapels of the robe. The ridiculously loose garment finished falling away from his shoulders and back as he slid his arms around her slender waist. Brushing his lips against hers, he savored another kiss. It had been two years ... For two whole years he had been alone in a void, thinking of her, listening for her call, waiting for her to need him once more. With a soft bite, he pressed into her for a hungrier, deeper kiss than before. His hands stretched further down her back to pull her closer still, when … the door banged open.

"Here you go!" Tobli waddled in with a fist-full of contracts. "Here's your copies. All signed and sealed. Don't want them to get lost in the office. My office needs a thorough cleaning I know, but I'm a busy, busy man. Busy, busy, busy! No time for small problems when I have promotions to handle. This is going to be big, Lady Yuna! It will be the biggest, best concert in all of Spira!" He chuckled to himself as he offered the finished paperwork, completely ignoring the fact that he had caught the couple in a compromising embrace.

Tidus shoved one of the incredibly long sleeves up to his elbow, freeing a hand to snatch the papers, but fought the urge to wad Tobli into a little ball and throw him for a long pass back to his office. He also resisted calling him nasty names because he realized he had no valid complaint about a lack of privacy in the guado storage house, but he hoped his scowl showed the full extent of his displeasure with the quirky little man's timing.

"Th-thank you, ... Tobli." Yuna was too breathless and mortified to say anything else.

"Naughty, naughty, you two." Tobli giggled like a chipmunk. "Well, looking forward to a great concert in Zanarkand, Lady Yuna! The best concert Spira's ever seen! See you then! Bye for now! Bye-bye!" The little man waddled back out, happily whistling to himself, completely unapologetic for having interrupted them.

Disgusted, Tidus slipped his arms out of the upper portion of the oversized robe, passed the contracts to Yuna, and began trying to untie the belt. "I thought you finished your business with him when you left his office," he complained.

"I told him to bring the copies to me, so we could go ahead and start hunting for the sphere." Yuna picked up his shirt for him. "You're not really mad about it, are you?"

Tidus sighed, wadded the robe in his arms, and tossed it back into the trunk where he found it. "Nah, I'm just … beginning to think I'm cursed. This always happens when I start thinking about ..."

Yuna quirked a brow at his pause.

He folded his arms over his chest. "... things I shouldn't be thinking," he finished as nondescriptly as he could this time.

She smirked sympathetically at his grumpy pout. "Well, you can't say I didn't warn you. You're _supposed_ to be helping me on a mission, instead of playing around. I don't think _I'm_ the one with the short attention span," she mildly scolded, tossing his shirt to him.

Tidus caught the shirt in one hand and smiled to himself at the somewhat-success of his mischief as he pulled it over his head and shoulders. It had been worth it just to hold her in his arms again for a few minutes. "Sounds like a challenge to me."

Yuna laughed at his threat and hooked her arms around his neck to give him one more kiss. "I'll look forward to it, … _after_ we find the sphere." Slipping away, she returned to the shelves of unchecked boxes.

"Fine, … but you are _no_ fun when you're focused on a mission." With a sigh, he crouched next to another trunk and resigned himself to begin the tedious task again when he heard her giggle. A couple of seconds later, he felt something soft thunk the top of his head, and a bright orange, little ball fell to the floor beside his foot. Picking it up, he was amused to discover it was squishy and flickered with an internal light when he shook the tentacle-like protrusions that covered it.

She giggled again. "See? Short attention span. I knew you couldn't resist that. One of the hazards of being a blitzball player, I guess," she added with an innocent, but victorious, grin.

He'd been tricked. "You know what? Game on, Yuna," he declared, pitching the whimsical thing back at her. Laughing aloud, she dodged and bent to pick it up, but before she could throw it back, he leaped over the trunk to intercept. As he pried it from her hands, but dropped it, both of them went down in a tackle, each of them struggling to claim the squishy little ball before the other. Needless to say, the task of searching for clues to the location of Seymour's sphere took a very long time, indeed.

))((

"Okay, just set it right here," Yuna told Rikku, as they shifted the new keyboard into place on the small practice stage in the corner of the cabin. "I don't know whether he'll love it or hate it, but you should have heard the song he played yesterday. I really want to hear it again, but ... I don't want him to be uncomfortable with seeing memories through Shuyin's eyes." Yuna saddened a little in uncertainty. "Maybe I should just take it back."

Rikku pressed the keys as if playing something though they were currently inactive and made no sound. "Don't be silly. It's a really nice keyboard. I'd wait and see if he wants it first. If he doesn't want to use it, maybe I will." She grinned. "I always wanted to learn how to play one of these."

"Gullwings," Buddy's voice came on over the ship's intercom. "I think we got something."

Yuna and Rikku both hurried to the bridge, where Buddy sat in his navigational corner and studied the radar map. "It might not be the one you're looking for, but Baaj temple has a sphere." He zoomed in on a red-glowing hot spot.

"Yes!" Yuna leaned forward and placed her hands on her knees to better see the map's markings. "It's definitely centered over the sunken temple area, isn't it. I'll go get Tidus and Paine."

She ran out of the airship and onto the beach to scan for the pair. They were easy to spot, standing near the water's edge going through a series of kicks and defense stances in perfect unison. "We found something!" she called as she jogged toward them. "There's a sphere in Baaj temple!"

Paine relaxed her stance as Yuna drew near. "You want to go after it right now?"

"Well, we should go before the sun sets for the sake of visibility, but you can finish your training first."

"I'm not going to be able to go with you if you go today. I'm up for guard duty at Kilika temple tonight," Tidus reminded her.

"Tomorrow then," Yuna suggested, digging her toes into the wet sand. "In the meantime, we can have Shinra set up a com sphere at the ruins to make sure no one else nabs it before we can make the dive."

"I'd better hit the shower, so I'm not late for my watch." Tidus told Paine.

She snatched the back of his shirt before he could walk away. "That's not how you end a training session. Do it right, or don't do it at all."

"Your highly recommended trainer is a real _pain_ about formality," Tidus whispered to Yuna, loud enough that Paine could hear it. But then he lowered himself to his knees and bowed before her. Standing, he bowed again at the waist, and not until she bowed in return was he dismissed.

Yuna smiled to herself and remained respectfully silent until they were done. "Why so serious?" she asked of Paine. "You didn't make me do that when I trained with you."

"Different student; different discipline," Paine answered as all three of them walked back to the airship. "Unarmed combat requires more attention to detail. If you have no weapons or armor, small details can mean more severe consequences with fewer second chances. Besides, when you trained with me, you were starting from scratch and naturally paid attention to small details. He's already seasoned with a sword, so he's careless."

"I'm not careless, or I wouldn't be alive," he retorted.

"You're a loose cannon." She cast Tidus an amused side glance. "What kind of training did Sir Auron give you, anyway?"

"Are you kidding? He handed me a sword and said, 'Take it. A gift from Jecht. I hope you know how to use it.'"

Yuna chuckled at his imitation of Auron's suave mannerism.

"_That's_ the extent of your sword training?" Paine stuck her hands in her pockets.

"Pretty much."

"Well, that explains a lot."

"Hey, I do okay for myself. Besides, it's not like I'm going to bow to a fiend before fighting it."

Paine snorted in amusement and shook her head. "So, where's my Jecht-shot lesson?"

"What other trick shots do you already know?"

"A few."

"Sphere shot? Because you should learn smaller trick shots before attempting the Jecht shot." Tidus stopped walking and squinted at her. "Can you do a back flip?"

Paine moved a few paces away from them and did a graceful demonstration.

"Nah, that's too sissy." He backed up a few paces and launched into the air backwards to show her how to get the height and power necessary to aim a kick at the peak of the curve. He over-rotated a bit coming out of the back-flip, but landed on his feet none-the-less. "Harder to do on land," he excused the minor stumble as he returned to them.

Paine pressed her lips together and smacked the back of his head.

"Ouch!" He rubbed the place she had targeted. "What was that for?"

"Little snot. No one calls my moves sissy."

"Hey, you're wanting to learn _my_ moves now," he reminded her with a laugh. "You have to jump up, not back - your whole body needs to be working together to push up as high as you can for those shots. Air time is important. Work on squats, lunges, wall-sits ... anything that will help you jump to the sky. Then we'll talk." He gave her a smug grin, but then jogged back to the airship.

The corner of Paine's mouth twitched. "I'll bet if I joined the Aurochs I'd get a lot more lesson and a little less ego."

Yuna laughed, but then realized he was about to spoil his surprise. "Tidus! Wait!" She ran after him. "Let Paine shower first!"

He stopped at the lift and waited for both of them to catch up. "I've got guard duty."

"I know, but ... just let her go first." Yuna grinned with excitement.

Tidus drew back with suspicion. "Uh-oh. Rikku's been _planning_ something for me."

"This one's my idea." Yuna stepped behind him to cover his eyes and guide him into the lift.

"Is it orange and squishy with tentacles that light up?" he asked as he moved forward with his human blindfold.

"Nope," Yuna chirped, but laughed at his guess.

Paine made a face at his descriptive and stepped in last to close the doors and press the button for the second deck. "I think I smacked him too hard," she confessed on the way up.

When the lift arrived on the cabin's floor, Paine detoured to the shower first. "Thiiis waaay," Yuna sang, guiding him toward the cabin's small, platform stage. "Step up. This way to your right - okay, your other right. There you go. Right here. _Ta-daaa_!" She released her hold and hopped forward to see his reaction. Tidus blinked at the keyboard in surprise, but she couldn't tell if he was happy or not.

"But, … it was just one song. You bought a keyboard because I played one song? One song I don't even remember that well?"

"Okay, maybe I was thinking more of me hearing it than you playing it," she admitted with mild guilt. "But you played it at Tobli's so well, I just thought that maybe you could ... I mean, if you enjoyed music once before maybe you could enjoy it again." She shook her head realizing how that sounded. "No, I mean, ... maybe it's a part of you, the same way that blitzball is." She watched him for a moment and saw that he seemed to be searching for enthusiasm. Her smile faded, but she tried not to be too disappointed. She had known there was a good chance he wouldn't like it. "It was a bad idea, wasn't it. It's okay if you don't want it. Rikku said she might want to learn how to play it, but if not, we can take it back."

Tidus looked into her dual colored eyes and could tell how much she really wished he could do this again. He looked to the keyboard with apprehension, but after a brief hesitation, touched the activation button and tested the volume. Then, he closed his eyes and reached into his memories for the forgotten melody once more … for her. His fingers began to instinctively find the tune. The song flowed more easily to him this time, rippling over itself and lingering in a haunting tune under a soft melody. More of the song came back to him as he continued to follow it through.

Paine poked her head out of the shower and then came out wrapped in a large towel to stand by Yuna and listen with surprise and approval.

"Hey, are we going to Baaj today, or ..." Rikku quieted with delight as she came into the cabin for and caught Tidus testing the new keyboard. "Wow," she silently mouthed in surprise to Yuna and giggled.

Yuna beamed with pride at his hidden talent and nodded in agreement.

))((

Tidus didn't hear them. He heard only the music in his head. His fingers mysteriously knew exactly where to fall between the keys to reproduce the ebb and flow of emotion in the haunting composition. This song was important for some reason. Why was this song so important?

When he lifted his fingers away from the last fading note, the silence was broken with sudden applause. Eyes wide, he looked over his shoulder to see he now had a small audience.

Yuna grinned with pride and applauded with little tiny claps at her chin in gratitude.

"Not too bad, Maestro," Paine complimented. "That was really pretty."

"That was amazing!" Rikku beamed and clapped with excitement. "Why didn't you tell us you played keyboards?"

He blushed in appropriate embarrassment. "I didn't know I could, ... until yesterday." He looked to Yuna with uncertainty, but then gave her forehead a light kiss. "Thanks. I really appreciate the gesture, but … it's just that ... "

"I understand." Yuna's smile reflected that truth. Approaching the keyboard, she placed her fingers over the keys. "Hey, maybe I can learn how to play it, so you don't have to. How did it go again?" She tested out a few notes trying to find the ones that matched the tune as she remembered it in her head.

Tidus winced at her attempts, until he could stand it no longer and moved behind her before she could butcher the little tune any further. Placing his hands over hers, he pressed her fingers over the keys to show her the beginning notes.

She gave it a try, but after a few failures gave a small-fisted stamp of frustration.

"Not quite," he chuckled and slipped his hands beneath hers to show her again.

Yuna lifted and folded her own hands to her chest to more easily see to the notes played, but became more engrossed in watching the light, fluttering flow of his hands. Like a purring cat, she sank back against him. "I don't think I could ever learn to play it the way you do."

Tidus noticed she seemed to have lost interest in learning and was content to just listen and watch. This was nice - seeing her happy, being close at the keyboard with her like this. But something about it also felt very frightening. He remembered now. It had been like this once before, ... with Lenne.


	13. Chapter 13: An Unlikely Ally

Chapter 13: An Unlikely Ally

All alone this time, Tidus reported for guard duty at the temple in Kilika at Yuna's recommendation. He'd chosen to wear his warrior sphere with the black basilisk armor, thinking he'd be taken more seriously as a real guard, compared to the yellow blitz uniform he usually wore as Yuna's guardian. Climbing the long steps up to the temple, he reached over his back to be sure his sword was secure in its sheath and headed into one of the two side chambers first. There, he was referred to a man named Peresu in the temple proper. Jogging into the interior, he found himself whistling his mysterious tune between his teeth until the "Hymn of the Fayth" being sung by some of the priests distracted him. "I'm looking for Peresu?" he asked of the first priest he passed.

"Up at the Cloister of Trials." The man pointed.

Tidus gave a brief bow of thanks and jogged up the steps to stand before the man at the top. "Are you Peresu? I'm on the roster to help guard the spheres."

"Name?" the bored guard asked.

"Tidus," he answered assuming he was speaking to the right guy.

"From?"

He almost said Zanarkand. "Besaid," Tidus corrected his thoughts.

"Besaid guardians … Tidus …," Peresu droned with boredom as he checked his list. His stopped with recognition at some point, but then he chuckled and looked back to Tidus, giving him a thoroughly skeptical examination before checking his name. "Very well. This way."

Confused at, but not bothered by, the strange reception, Tidus followed him down into the Cloister of Trials. About halfway through the tunnel, Peresu pulled a key from his pocket and slid it into a barely noticeable crack in the wall. A panel in the floor opened and he gestured toward it.

"This area is off limits to anyone without permission to be here, so if anyone other than your partner's replacement shows up, you are to hold them for questioning and report them. There is a holding cell just inside the treasury vault - the door just before the sphere vault. Don't speak to anyone about anything you see down there. You only hold this position because you've gained your commander's highest trust, and his head will be on the line if you fail. Do you understand?"

"Commander? Oh, … you mean Yuna."

"Lady Yuna, in your case. Go relieve one of the guards on duty. Another person will be along shortly to relieve the other."

Tidus nodded and climbed down the ladder into the opening. Once he was at the bottom, the opening at the top closed, sealing him inside. It wasn't a comforting sound or feeling. The long tunnel in which he stood had been roughly carved from stone and braced with large wooden beams. It was lit only by torches. Kilika's underground wasn't as nice as Bevelle's. This place looked old - _really __old._

Alone once more, he followed the tunnel as it curved around and down, until he saw two people standing at a large, magically warded door - the treasury vault, no doubt. The guards on post there regarded him with close suspicion, but allowed him to pass. Further down the tunnel and to the left, there was another door warded with glyphs and watched by two guards who immediately raised their weapons toward him. Tidus lifted his hands to show that he was not a threat. "I'm just here to relieve one of you from guard duty."

One of the guards happened to be a female guado; the other was a man from the Youth League. The Youth League representative removed a small, flat device from his pocket and scrolled through the information stored in it. "Name and station?"

"Tidus, ... Besaid." It felt strange to say that again, ... but good.

The guard found Tidus's name and description entry. "Seventeen, one year experience as a personal guardian for summoner pilgrimage, longsword specialties." He took note of the large sword strapped to Tidus's back.

"Yessir." Tidus patiently waited to pass the inspection of his second checkpoint.

"Build is small, height is ..." The Youth League guard paused to estimate Tidus's height visually. "Short," he decided.

Tidus frowned.

The guard continued comparing the physical descriptions, but then started laughing. "Spunky blond hair, beautiful blue eyes, tanned skin, adorable little nose, and radiant smile?" The guard laughed some more as he looked up from the report. "_Lovely_ resume."

The guado guardian laughed, too, but kept her magical staff aimed at Tidus's chest. "Guess you really impressed your captain. Either he really _loves_ you, or he_ really_ hates you."

Tidus was almost speechless as they continued laughing. "Does it _actually say_ that?" He reached for the device to read it himself, but the Youth League guard snapped it out of reach.

"Well, I certainly didn't make it up as I went along, Sunshine. But, opinions aside, it looks like you are who you claim to be. You're cleared. This job's pretty simple. Stay awake until your replacement arrives and don't let anyone who comes down here without permission escape. There's a copy of the roster on this imprint pad if you need to check names and descriptions of who's coming in after you. No formal notifications - no entry. Got it?" He allowed Tidus to have the imprint pad, nodded to the guado still waiting for her relief, and then headed down the tunnel toward the exit.

Tidus immediately checked the roster, turning it upside down and then on its side before finally holding it the right way to read it. The description on his profile had been magically lifted from the paper Yuna had signed in Baralai's office. It was her handwriting, right down to the little sketched hearts decorating his name. "What the …?" He chuckled, considering how insulted she had been while she was writing it. In fact, that's probably why she did it - to further annoy Baralai, since he didn't want Tidus on the watch bill in the first place.

"The next person that comes down here should be my replacement," the guado told him. "When he arrives, cross his name out. Then, you shouldn't have any more visitors for another seven hours."

Tidus lifted his chin from musing over Yuna's humorous defiance on the guard roster. "_Seven hours?_" He looked around at the stone walls and groaned. This place was about as exciting as watching hair grow. "Can we go in there and actually look at the spheres while we wait?" He gestured to the door.

"Not unless you want the magical wards to fry you." She stepped back and took another discerning look at him. "You look really familiar for some reason."

"Are you a blitzball fan?" He gave her a playful smile along with his hint.

"No."

His smile dropped. "Oh."

"Wait a second. You're that unsent blitzball player from Zanarkand, right?"

"Do I look unsent? I am _not_ unsent," he answered, annoyed.

"Maester Seymour didn't look unsent either, but he was." She mused quietly to herself for a moment as she studied his face and form, trying to discern the truth. Then, she stepped forward and sniffed him.

Tidus drew back in offense. "Look, I don't mean to be rude, but ..."

"The scent of the Farplane lingers, but …" She stepped closer and sniffed him again. "But there's something different about it."

His brow quirked in doubt. "You smell the Farplane on me?"

"The Farplane is filled with magical flowers that do not grow anywhere else on Spira. They help departed souls rest in peace. Guado are very sensitive to their fragrance because we live so close to it." She would have explained more, but she heard footsteps approaching, so she turned to see who her replacement would be. "Praetor Baralai." The surprised guado greeted him with a formal bow.

))((

At the ancient ruins of Baaj, Shinra placed the com sphere carefully on one of the long, thin paths that seemed to defy gravity the way it arched above the water without any supports. He made a few adjustments, and then he touched it to activate the connection from that end. "All done." The boy stood and dusted his hands. "Can we go back now? I don't like this place." He could see the fiends swimming in the water between the sunken columns and statues below him.

Yuna smiled and held out her hand to him. "We're done here for today. Thanks for the help."

"No problem." Shinra grasped her hand and let her lead him along the cracked path above the watery graveyard back to the airship.

After the boy went inside, Yuna lingered behind for a moment and walked back out to one of the stone ledges. Sitting down to enjoy the sunset over the water, she hummed the song to herself that Tidus had played and focused her eyes on the shell ring that graced her middle finger. She couldn't help but smile to herself when she remembered how she received it. It was just a cheap carved shell, but it was more precious to her now than any expensive jewel.

"What'cha doing?" Rikku asked as she approached and dropped to sit beside her, feet splayed outwardly to either side of her hips.

"Just enjoying the moment. The light on the water makes me think of that song Tidus played. It's very reflective. Don't you think so?"

"Yeah, kind of." Rikku grinned as she studied her cousin's face. "You're really happy to have him back, aren't you?"

Yuna blushed slightly and nodded. "I used to feel that … we went through so much to bring the Calm, and yet … I wasn't able to enjoy it with him. But Tidus is back. I'm doing something I enjoy. And all my friends are together again. Now _I _can enjoy the Calm, too." She punctuated her feelings with a small smile.

Rikku smiled. "Good for you, Yunie," she softly congratulated her.

"Tomorrow, we need to locate that sphere and take it to Kimahri, … if it's the right one. And, ... are you doing anything tonight? Would you like to go to Luca with me?" Yuna stretched her legs on the stone slab and tapped her toes together as she leaned back on her hands for support.

"Sure. In the mood for a movie or some sphere break since Tidus isn't here to smooch on?"

"Ah! Rikku."

"Well, that _would _be more fun, right?" Rikku couldn't be blamed for stating facts.

Yuna laughed with her. "Well, yes, but I want to see if I can find a sphere of his song."

The thief's nose twitched. "Okay, but ... how? Do you know what it's called?"

"No, but hopefully a little bit of leg work and a lot of luck will go a long way." Yuna stood and clasped her hands behind her back. "Let's go get some gil and see if Brother will take us to Luca."

))((

"Change of plans in the guard roster at the last minute," Baralai told the guado female at Tidus's side. "You are relieved." Taking the imprint pad from Tidus, he crossed out the name of the person he was replacing. Then, he tucked it into his own pocket and gave the guado a formal bow.

"Thank you, Praetor." The guado dismissed her summoned weapon, bowed, and walked back down the tunnel toward the exit.

Tidus met the praetor's small brown eyes without backing down from his stare. "Didn't trust me, did you?"

"No," Baralai honestly answered. He closed his eyes for a second and summoned his double-ringed, razor-bladed staff.

Tidus shook his head in disbelief. "You would actually leave your cushy office to stand down here for _seven_ hours looking at rock walls because you couldn't trust me? That is _sad_."

"If that's what you think, then you don't understand the importance of guarding these spheres. How much do you know about New Yevon, ... Tidus?" He still had to make himself remember that name because another came to mind first.

"You mean other than how to spell it?" He slumped against the door frame with a sigh. Baralai wasn't being unfriendly, but Tidus could tell this was going to be a very strained evening.

Baralai ignored his sarcasm, moved into position on the other side of the door, and looked straight ahead while speaking. "The founder and first chairman of New Yevon was a man named Trema. After Yuna brought the Eternal Calm, he started an organization of sphere hunters called the Seekers. Their purpose was to recover as many spheres as possible, and in doing so, recover Spira's lost past. He then organized New Yevon to protect the temples and preserve the spheres that were found. But when he began to hoard the spheres in secret, as the old Yevon maesters did, people became suspicious. He told us that he believed the only way to look toward the future was to destroy the past. When groups like the Youth League put pressure on him to make the spheres public, we investigated and discovered that he had been using New Yevon as a front to cover his secret destruction of the spheres."

"Bit embarrassing, huh?" Tidus smirked. "No wonder you guys don't like saying much about what goes on behind your doors."

Baralai frowned at him, but continued in his usual soft-spoken voice. "His betrayal hurt the people who trusted him more than it did those who disagreed with him. The rest of New Yevon felt that, while change should occur slowly over time, such a radical destruction of the past would be like burning a bridge before knowing where it leads. So, we decided he was no longer an asset to our purposes. He was forced to resign, but he fled and took a number of precious spheres with him. He never came back, and a new chairman was promoted to take his place." He paused and allowed a small smile to light on his lips. "Are you aware of the engagement negotiations between the chairman's son and Lady Yuna?"

Tidus looked across the glowing door between them. Remembering what Yuna had said to Baralai after the first meeting when they went back to apologize for being absent, he had to admit he didn't really want to talk about it now. "I thought she was engaged to you."

Baralai smiled in genuine amusement that he had been concerned about that possibility. "No. Although many people assume so because of a misunderstanding about the last turnover in leadership. The chairman and his son, the first praetor, became a bit too power-hungry, so they were forced to resign, and I was elected praetor in his son's place. So, … it wasn't me. And Yuna wasn't really engaged, so much as he offered and she refused. I didn't meet Yuna until after I'd been elected to replace him." The praetor was mildly amused again - this time at the visible relief on Tidus's face.

"But you made it sound like … you cared about her."

"I do. We've become close friends since then. I didn't say those things to hurt her. I said them because I'm concerned that ..."

"That I'm not good enough for her," Tidus surmised.

"I will always have her best interest at heart. Anyway, it's been my job to clean up Trema's mess ever since. We finally found his body in the Via Infinito, and we found some of the shattered spheres he had taken with him. We're still not completely sure how he died, though."

"_Completely_?" Tidus looked to the praetor with a quirked brow. Baralai may not have known everything about the event, but he apparently knew something.

"To destroy a thousand years of history in one instant could only have been madness, ... or possession." The answer was vague, but it was all Baralai was willing to give.

"Oh, okay, now I get it. You're blaming Shuyin for possessing him, too?"

Baralai's eyes shifted sidelong toward him. "I'm explaining why it's important to guard these spheres. They are all that we have left."

The sound of the treasury door down the tunnel opening and closing reminded them of the fact that they were not alone in their hidden location under the temple, so they continued their conversation in hushed tones.

Tidus shrugged. "Well, it sounds to me like Trema found something on those spheres that made him panic, if he was so bent on destroying them."

"Some things are better left unsaid in order to avoid widespread panic. But there is no excuse for the destruction of truth, no matter how shocking it may be." Baralai gave him a meaningful look for a moment, then turned away, pacing lightly.

Tidus gave the praetor a peculiar glance for that comment. _Some things are better left unsaid_ ... "Did you tell anyone that I was from Zanarkand?"

"I assume you are referring to the rumors circulating thanks to the Luca interview you did with Sunsa? No, that is not my doing. I have no idea who would resort to gossip to try to destroy your reputation, but people are certainly talking. They say you are unsent and wonder why we do not send you. That makes it all the more difficult to be in my position and include you in the conference. A fiend does not normally want an alliance, nor does it have friends willing to defend it. But if it did, ... would that make it any less a fiend?"

Tidus frowned in disgust at being compared to a fiend, and he was about to refute Baralai's opinions, when a movement behind the praetor's shoulder caught his eye - a gun being hoisted onto a masked man's shoulder. "Look out!" He grabbed Baralai's coat and pulled him face down to the ground just as the gun fired.

Baralai looked behind him as five masked men came running down the hall toward them. "Don't let them get to the door!" Back on his feet, he spun his ringed staff into a spear-head position.

Tidus unsheathed Caladbolg with a loud _shiiing_ and moved into position beside Baralai to confront the oncoming ambush.

))((

Rikku and Yuna arrived in Luca as dusk turned into night. Under starry skies with ocean breeze, they had a pleasant stroll down the docks that surrounded the port city. At the music store, however, no amount of searching the database of registered songs was able to match the tune that Yuna hummed into it. Finally, she gave up and went to the front desk.

"Excuse me," she spoke to the lady at the register.

"Lady Yuna! What a surprise! What can we help you with today?" The clerk was excited to have a celebrity in the store.

"Well, I'm looking for a song. Only I don't know the title."

"Not a problem. Our select-a-tune has the largest data base of songs in Spira just for those pesky titles that escape us sometimes."

"I've already tried; it's not in there."

"Oh? Well, what kind of song is it?"

"It's ... kind of old. It's a Zanarkand song, I think."

"Oh my. I don't think we have anything that old."

Yuna was disappointed. "Would you happen to know of anyone who collects rare music?"

"I'm afraid not. Um, Lady Yuna? Could you ...? Would you mind ...?" The clerk lifted a piece of paper with a pleading expression.

Yuna laughed lightly and accepted the paper and pen for an autograph. "You need to come to my next concert, okay? I'm going to do it in the Zanarkand Ruins for the opening ceremony of the new sphere library."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful! Is that why you're wanting Zanarkand music? Or, is it because of ... _him?_"

Yuna blinked. "_Him_?"

"You know - the blitzball player. Is he really from Zanarkand? Is he really unsent?"

Yuna pressed her lips together, finished the autograph, and handed it back to the woman. "He's not unsent."

"Oh, good. I didn't think he could be, because you would probably never be with him if he was, right?" She laughed in light embarrassment for having asked.

The former summoner made herself smile politely, even though she felt like yelling at this woman for believing those rumors. "I think it would be very fitting to have a Zanarkand song played for the concert. Something besides the 'Hymn of the Fayth'. Something that represents a time when Zanarkand was full of life instead of death. Please, come if you can." Yuna said nothing more as she bowed her head slightly and left the store.

Rikku whimpered and followed after her.

Yuna stopped at the rail on the docks overlooking the water and stared angrily at the reflection of the lamp light on the dark water below the dock.

The small thief stopped beside her and leaned forward over the rail to look into her sad face. "You know she wasn't trying to be mean, ... right?"

"I know. I just can't help thinking of what Tidus is going to face at his next game. It could affect his ability to play well; it could make the Aurochs lose supporters. Rikku, we can't let this rumor about him being unsent keep going. But I don't know how to stop it. I've already done a com cast to try to correct it, and so did he. What more can we do?"

Rikku quirked her mouth in puzzlement and looked down at the water with a discouraged sigh. "For once, ... I have no plan," she apologized.


	14. Chapter 14: Trouble at the Temple

Chapter 14: Trouble in the Temple

A noxious gas exploded in the corridor, magically blinding the two guardians of the sphere vault. Overcome with a coughing fit in the fumes and trying to see through the black void, Tidus realized too late he had come unprepared to shake off magical attacks. He could hear Baralai already clashing with the vault raiders, but if he was blinded as well, they could end up accidentally hurting each other. The praetor had commanded him to guard the door of the vault, so using a hand against the wall as his guide, Tidus planted himself firmly in front of it and snapped Caladbolg into position before him. He knew it was only a matter of seconds before the fight would come to him. Falling into a state of concentration that Paine had taught him, he tried to still his irritated lungs and focus on the sounds of Baralai's battle. Shuffling of quick feet, a swish of air, a grunt of discomfort ... An attack was coming his way.

Unlocking his reserve, he swung Caladbolg and was surprised to block a blade aimed toward his head. Grabbing the arm at the end of that sword, he threw his opponent against the magically warded door behind him. The wild zapping of the thundaga spells catching the thief in their magic was enough to remind Tidus what would happen to him as well, if he backed up too close. Before he could congratulate himself on his quick victory, however, a gun fired. Pain seared into his arm. Still blinded, he realized there was no way he could defend himself against missiles, either.

A firaga spell engulfed someone, but the spinning sound of Baralai's staff weaving a defensive shield around himself meant that if he had not cast it, at least he had not fallen victim to it. The gun fired again and again, until Baralai's razor-sharp staff stopped spinning and silenced it. Still, the footsteps rushing across the stone floor kept coming - too many to separate.

Tidus raised Caladbolg and strained to single out one source at a time as he moved to the side of the warded door and pressed his back against the wall. Immediately something hit and was reflected away from his basilisk cuirass. Grateful he'd made the right choice in armor, at least, he swung Caladbolg toward the direction of the hit. This time he swished only air, so he turned and stepped forward to try again, but another attack immediately followed from behind - a stab to the back that managed to penetrate the strong, supple armor. Then, something hard slammed into his cheek and bottom lip staggering him to the floor. Had all three remaining thieves surrounded him?

His lungs burned making it hard to breathe, but tasting his own blood motivated him to switch strategies. Wincing at the pain in his arm and back, he tightened his grip on Caladbolg and swept it forward once more. He still couldn't target anything, but his bet that the close range attacks could be turned in his favor paid off as he struck hard and fast without pause. Most of his hits were low, setting up a pattern in their defensive blocks, but then he suddenly shifted to one knee and struck high, pushing up and shoving against one of his opponents, surprising him. It created an opening in their force. And what Caladbolg did not end after that, a grapple and shove toward the electrical glyphs in the locked door did.

When the attacks stopped coming and Caladbolg met with no more resistance, Tidus dropped to his knees in exhaustion. The tunnel, at last, fell silent, except for the sounds of his own labored breathing and coughing as his lungs fought to expel the noxious gas. "Praetor Baralai, ... are you still there?" he gasped with a dry, hoarse voice.

One more pair of footsteps moved a short distance ahead of him. As they closed the distance, Tidus could hear a soft _chink_ of rings slide to the tip of a razor-sharp spear. Baralai was alive, but he wasn't responding. Tidus closed his eyes and tried to catch his breath, head bowed as he heard the praetor come to a stop before him. A moment of silence followed, … and then Tidus heard the rings slide back in the other direction against the fist holding the shaft. Tidus opened his eyes, but still saw only the void of his magical blindness. Why wasn't Baralai responding?

))((

Baralai lowered the tip of his ringed spear over the back of Yuna's favored guardian again. The young man on his hands and knees before him in a fog of magical darkness, though caught between reality and illusion, was bleeding very real blood and seemed to be in a lot of pain. One correctly placed stab with the lethal staff would forever settle the matter of whether Tidus was among the living or the dead, … aside from the fatal results. The praetor knew that this was the best opportunity to put him out of his misery.

Sighing to himself, he lowered the staff and placed his free hand on the guardian's head, instead. "Still here," he answered, casting a spell to cleanse the toxin from his lungs and dispel the magical smoke from his eyes.

Tidus looked up at him with gratitude and exhaled with relief. Cautious of the praetor's delayed aid, he scanned the results of the battle.

Baralai did the same. Several bodies, all dressed in black uniforms, lay on the floor, but the door remained sealed. "We need reinforcements, but we cannot leave the door unguarded."

"I'll stay here," Tidus volunteered, his throat still raspy, … his wounds still bleeding.

Baralai nodded in acceptance of the offer, knowing he had no choice now but to trust him. Crouching beside the injured guardian, the praetor cast another couple of healing spells over the worst of the wounds. That would have to hold him together until he was relieved of duty.

Without further words, Baralai rose and headed down the hall toward the exit. As he passed by the treasury door, however, he stopped. Something was amiss. He looked at the door with furrowed brows, and a bad feeling began to churn in his gut. Turning on his boot heel, he strode back to the sphere vault and rolled one of the bodies over, pulling the black mask from the face. Then, he turned to another body and did the same. "Check the faces of the others."

Tidus scooted toward one of the bodies near the door and pulled the mask away. "Do you know them?"

"This one and that one ... They were the treasury guards . We've got spies among us. Search the bodies and see if you can find any clues about who they might be working for. I'll be right back with reinforcements." Baralai stood and marched away in anger.

))((

Still tasting the blood in his mouth from his cut lip, Tidus sheathed Caladbolg and dragged himself over the body of the thief with the gun. Turning out pockets and utility belt pouches, he searched clothing and small items for anything of significance. When the first body turned up nothing, he moved to the next, where he found a spare bottle of healing potion. Drinking it down and tossing the bottle aside, he moved to the third body. He was about ready to give up when a white cloth tucked inside of the thief's sleeve caught his attention. Tidus pinched the cloth and pulled it free. Upon opening it, he saw three black symbols. The first he recognized from the flag of the new Youth League headquarters. The second symbol was unknown to him. The third symbol made his eyes widen in surprise. "The Zanarkand Abes?"

))((

Rikku tried hard to think of a plan to stop the gossip about Tidus from spreading all across Spira. She tried so hard that her head was beginning to hurt. "We'll think of something. Don't you worry," she told Yuna. "Meanwhile, I think I know of a way we might find your song."

Gazing into the dark waters beneath the Luca docks, Yuna lifted her chin and looked to Rikku in curiosity.

"Well, it's a one-in-a-million shot, and he might say no, but if he's going to be releasing them eventually anyway, maybe Baralai would let you browse the temple collection to see if there's any music in them."

Yuna's slow smile quickly strengthened. "Rikku! That's brilliant!"

"It is?" Rikku blinked in surprise at her own genius.

"Why didn't I think of that? We might not find Tidus's song, but it might give us some other Zanarkand music for the concert. Rikku, this is going to be the best concert ever! As soon as we check out Baaj, we'll go see Baralai and ask about the temple's spheres!"

"Okay!"

"I guess there's nothing more we can do here tonight, then. Are you ready to head back?"

"Yep!" Rikku ran down the docks, challenging Yuna to keep up with her as she rounded the corner to the central area of the Luca stadium. Then, she slowed to a walk and hopped down the stairs to go to one of the public spheres that linked communications all over Spira's. She placed her hands on the sphere and tapped through the small series of menus to get the link she wanted. A few seconds later a man with a blond mohawk and a very tattooed face appeared in the sphere's blue gel. "Brother? Come and get us."

"Rogerruu!"

"Did anyone else come after the Baaj sphere yet?" Yuna asked over Rikku's shoulder.

"Not yet. So far, she is all ours!" The tattooed man strutted like a chicken to indicate this meant they were on top of things. "Buddy! It's time to pick up Yuna!" His face blurred out of the gel.

Rikku's face fell. "Hey! What about me? He never includes me."

As they turned to leave, a cleaning lady came down into the locker room pit with her supply cart. She paused at the sight of Yuna and approached the locker room of the Besaid Aurochs with caution. "Is he in there now?" she timidly asked, pointing a finger.

"Who? Tidus?" Rikku picked up the question, instead of Yuna. "Of course not. It's not game time, is it?"

The cleaning lady nodded and then pushed the door open, nervously wheeling her supply cart inside.

Yuna sighed heavily and stepped into the room behind the lady. "Just so that you know, he's not unsent. He said that over the com cast. Why does no one believe him?"

"It's not your fault," the cleaning lady answered. "It's not even his fault, really. The maesters of Yevon tainted everyone's trust. We cannot believe what we see anymore. He didn't answer the reporter's question about where he was for two years. Some say he died." She picked up her broom, but was clearly challenging Yuna to answer for him.

Rikku looked to Yuna, who seemed to be torn about how to respond. Lie? Tell the truth? Refuse to answer?

"He was with me," her cousin stubbornly answered. "He was with me for two years, ... watching over me and helping me find my way, to be sure I didn't get lost."

The small thief was mute with surprise. She _lied_? Yunie never lied! Although, it was kinda true, ... she guessed.

"Even if what you say is true, he will have to prove his worst skeptics wrong. Trust once broken must be re-earned." The cleaning lady moved to the corner of the room, and began sweeping.

Rikku remembered Lulu's execution of a perfect fireball, and how Tidus used his own back as a shield to break the onslaught of flames. Yuna didn't need to lie for him. Tidus would regain everyone's trust, even though he did nothing to deserve losing it. She just hoped he had a better plan for how to do that than she or Lulu did.

))((

Later that night, as Yuna climbed into bed and prepared to turn out the light, she looked toward the empty futon missing Tidus's usual good-night kiss. With a sigh, she realized there was probably no point in leaving a light on for him while he had guard duty. Turning out the light, Yuna drew her pillow into a comfortable position under her head, breathed a sigh, and closed her eyes.

Moments later, the cabin door opened with a hiss and heavy boots crossed the floor of the private quarters deck. "Yuna," Tidus wearily called toward the loft and began unfastening the buckles on his armor.

Immediately opening her eyes, Yuna grinned and scrambled out of her bed to lean over the rail and see him, but what she saw wasn't quite what she expected. He was with Baralai, and both of them looked haggard with exhaustion. Knowing something was wrong, Yuna hurried down the stairs to meet them.

Woken by the call, Rikku sat up and snapped the light back on.

"Oh my gosh!" Yuna exclaimed ass soon as the light revealed Tidus's condition. "What happened to you?"

"Our watch was hit by an ambush. Some thieves tried to break into the temple to steal the spheres." He pulled off his bracers.

Alert to the light and conversation, one-by-one, the rest of the Gullwings crew filtered out of their beds to see what was going on.

Baralai related the events of the evening that led to the fight. "I've doubled security and called in the next watch for emergency purposes, so that's going to change the current schedule," he added at the end. "I'll update you as soon as I can write up a new one."

"How many of 'em were there?" Cid asked.

"Enough to almost overwhelm us, but two of them were temple guards. They all dressed in black, but only one of them carried significant markings of allegiance - a white cloth with some symbols on it. One was the symbol for the Youth League. Another looked like an insignia for the Seekers, believe it or not. And the other symbol I can't place, though it looks familiar. I'm going to have to start an investigation to find out how the temple's own guards would be sneaking in thieves, but I'm not sure what to do with them once I find them. I don't want to take the path of punishments that Old Yevon took toward traitors, but I can't let them get away with this."

"Hmm." The older Al Bhed's man's eyes narrowed slightly. "An attack like that does sound like something the meyvn of the Youth League would do."

Barali shook his head in disgust. "Maybe Nooj is up to his old tricks, or maybe this is someone new. I don't know what to think anymore."

"Nooj is under negotiations for the project," Paine spoke. "You're on common ground now. He wouldn't launch an attack on you and risk losing that."

Baralai looked at her with pained honesty. "Never stopped him from attacking on common ground before."

"That Nooj wasn't _our_ Nooj," Paine sternly reminded him. "That was Shuyin's influence."

"Never-the-less, he did what he did," Baralai answered.

Paine sighed and studied her friend's worried, noble countenance. "Are you okay?"

He reluctantly nodded. "It was a tough fight. We both got stomped pretty good, since we were outnumbered. He took a more brutal beating than I did, so I decided he needed the rest of the night to heal, rather than trying to keep the entire seven-hour watch by himself. I wanted to make sure he got back okay, but my healing spells are on reserve the rest of the evening in case we have to cope with any more surprises. I'll speak with the captain of the guards and see if he actually knew those two men from the treasury, or if they were imposters, ... but then I'll have to speak with Nooj."

"Please don't accuse Nooj of anything until you know whether he's behind it," Yuna suggested. "We'll talk to him and see if he knows anything about it, ... if you like? But if you accuse him and he's innocent, the negotiations could fall apart. Spira could become divided again."

"I know." Baralai struggled quietly with his frustration with the situation.

Rikku winced sympathetically and stepped forward to Baralai. "If you're conserving your healing spells, maybe we could fix you up with ours before you go back."

Baralai sighed and gave a small smile to her. "Thank you, Rikku."

Rikku stepped behind him to help him remove his coat. "You should wash up, so we can see which injuries need the strongest spells first." She pointed to the sink in the bathroom and followed him.

Tidus pulled off his pauldrons and stacked them with his bracers for needing repair before putting the armor back into the magical grid. He reached to unstrap Caladbolg's sheath, but his wounded arm refused to stretch.

Yuna moved behind him to help. "Do you suppose they were just sphere hunters trying to make a quick fortune? I mean, this sort of thing didn't start happening until the number of spheres held in the temples increased. News of the library project has been all over the com casts, so even thieves would know about it. I wonder if any of the other temples' collections were hit, too."

Paine leaned on the bar and tapped her fingertips together thoughtfully as she watched Rikku attempting to aid Baralai at the sink. "This sounds too calculated for ordinary thieves. Either they're a professional crime syndicate, or there's an open rebellion brewing against New Yevon." She absently rubbed a knuckle as she contemplated the circumstances.

As soon as Yuna freed Tidus from his sword and helped him out of his cuirass, he joined Baralai and Rikku at the sink to wait his turn in somber silence.

Baralai removed his crimson-stained, white-linen shirt and braced himself over the sink as Rikku began to carefully apply the few cure spells she had learned to his arms and torso. The praetor looked to the wounded guardian at his side and was thoughtful for a moment as he considered all that had happened. "Would you guys be interested in doing some footwork for me?"

Tidus shrugged. "Brother's the boss. You'll have to take it up with him."

"P-shaw on that," Rikku dismissed it. "What do you need us to do?"

"Well, I hate to suggest it, but it might be good if you could talk to Leblanc."

"Ack!" Rikku choked and stuck out her tongue. "Noooooo! Isn't there some other kind of job you need us to do?"

Baralai chuckled lightly at her reaction. "Just one interview."

"Leblanc? Isn't that 'Noojie-Woojie's' girl?" Tidus asked, remembering her from their one and only meeting in Guadosalam.

Baralai allowed himself a skeptical smile. "I guess you could call her that. Leblanc is a sphere hunter like the Gullwings, but unlike the Gullwings, she's not above pulling a few dirty tricks to get the spheres that she wants. She knows what goes on in the Youth League, and she knows what goes on in the underworld operations of sphere hunting. If you could talk to her before we have to confront Nooj, maybe she would be able to shed some light on what he's been up to."

Rikku frowned and crossed her arms over her chest with a pout. "Oh, okay," she groused.

"Thank you. And ... thank you." For the second thanks, he indicated the healed wounds she had just closed for him. He picked up his blood stained shirt and put it back on. Then, he accepted his coat back from her. "I should be going." He paused in front of Tidus and set a hand to his shoulder briefly, letting him know that he was grateful for his help.

Tidus sighed and moved to stand before the sink. He shrugged out of his shirt and dropped it to the floor to inspect his injuries and begin rinsing away the dried blood. His back had bled the worst, but at least it had already been healed.

"I can't believe we have to work with that woman." Rikku passed the clean cloths she had not used to Tidus. Then, she picked up the bloodied ones to carry to the laundry baskets at the back of the bathroom. "That's the last time I open my mouth volunteering to help."

"Oh, ... Baralai?" Yuna followed, stopping him at the bathroom door. "Maybe this isn't a good time to ask, but ... would it be possible for me to look through the temple's sphere collection to try to find some Zanarkand music for the concert? I know it's trivial in light of what you just went through, but ..."

"Music spheres?" Baralai paused and ran through a mental index of what he knew to be among the spheres that the temple owned. "I don't think anyone's ever wanted to use them for finding music. I'd love to say yes, but I don't think that's such a good idea right now."

Yuna was disappointed. "Why not?"

Baralai faced her and considered his words carefully before saying them. "I give my word that the temple will eventually release all of its spheres, but it will need to be done gradually - in stages. There are some spheres that carry disturbing images from Spira's past."

"Disturbing images?" Yuna frowned with curiosity.

Tidus touched the button to stop the noisy flow of warm water in the sink so he could hear this.

The praetor glanced to him and the other sleepy Gullwings who stood silently, watching and listening. "Images that are responsible for Trema wanting to destroy them," he hesitantly explained.

Tidus almost smiled in smug satisfaction. "So, I was right guessing he saw something that made him panic."

"Look, I ... can't say anymore about it." Baralai backed out of the conversation, preferring to hold onto New Yevon's secrets, still. "I just don't think it would be wise for you to browse through all of the spheres, yet. But if one comes to mind that has music on it, I will certainly try to find it and release it to you." With a small bow of apology for declining her request, the praetor excused himself to leave.

Yuna didn't know what to think of the Praetor's protective behavior, or what he had said. But his mention of Trema brought her mind back to seeing his ghostly image in the depths of the Via Infinito before he transformed into an incredibly powerful fiend, and then that brought to mind the most recent discovery in that mysterious place. "Baralai? One more thing ..." She caught him again before he could make it to the cabin door. "When the Machine Faction was setting up to go begin repairs on Spira's core, Brother sent a watcher into the Via Infinito. We saw an unsent woman down there that we had not seen before. She was terrified and looking for an escape when she vanished and reappeared. Do you know who she was?"

Baralai's light brown skin would have drained of all color to match his snow white hair, if it could have. As it was, he tried not to let his surprise show. "The Via Infinito is probably as old as Spira itself, and not much is known about it. In fact, most people, even in the temple, didn't know it existed until those children discovered the portal."

"But _you_ know something about it because you found Trema's body down there." Tidus leaned against the sill of the bathroom door. "Why would Trema go into such a place?"

"And who would put something as dangerous as an elder drake under a temple?" Brother asked. "It broke my watcher and knocked it down one of the holes," he added with a disgruntled growl.

"It's Spira's Hell." Shinra piped up, joining his older friends congregating around the New Yevon praetor.

"What? How would you know anything about it?" Rikku had been sitting on a stool at the bar, tapping the toes of her fuzzy moogle slippers together.

"I know everything," Shinra reminded her in his usual matter-of-fact tone. "In ancient mythologies, there were places of rest and unrest for the dead. It makes sense that if the Farplane is a place of rest for the dead souls of Spira, there must also be a place of unrest to balance the magic. The Via Infinito, being a dungeon containing the extreme fiends that it does, seems to fit that description." The small boy looked to Baralai. "Am I right?"

Yuna folded her hands under chin and looked to Baralai in confusion.

))((

Baralai looked at each of the faces around him waiting for his answer. Secrets closely guarded for more than a thousand years lay on the edge of his lips. But was it wise to release them?

Paine stood from her place at the bar and approached him with a frown and a direct challenge. "Spill it."


	15. Chapter 15: Keeper of Secrets

Chapter 15: Keeper of Secrets

Baralai acknowledged Shinra's clever logic with a touch of admiration and a heavy sigh. "When the Farplane was summoned into the heart of the ship, there needed to be a balance in the exchange of positive and negative energy at the core, so ... they had to create an infinite dungeon."

"Wait a minute. If you know that, then did you know Spira was a ship before we told you?" Buddy asked with surprise.

"Yes. It used to be common knowledge until the Machina War clouded everything. After the war, Yevon decided it was a mystery best kept safely locked away. The secret has been well kept ever since because most of the evidence has been destroyed or forgotten. To some extent that is good, because there's a heavy burden and high risk that comes with this knowledge. If anyone were to try to take control of the ship, the rest of us would be at the mercy of a fate worse than Sin."

"Then who gets to be captain? New Yevon?" Brother asked.

Baralai shook his head. "Spira herself. She's a living entity that flows through all of this machina and land." He sighed to himself, unable to believe he was telling them this, but ... since the Fayth had already let the cat out of the bag to Yuna, perhaps it was time to follow their lead. "The woman that you saw in the Via Infinito ... that was Spira. She was the ship's captain."

Yuna felt her heart grow heavy as she remembered the ghost's terror. "What happened to her?"

"We only know parts of the story because our resources are limited. She was cast into the Via Infinito for treason against the Founders, and then her spirit was summoned into the heart of the ship."

"Has anyone ever tried to send her?"

"No. Because if she is sent, ... our world will die."

Yuna's heart went out to the woman who she had never met. "But -"

"She _is _Spira, Yuna." Baralai had to bring her out of her sympathy to realize the painful truth. "She is the breath of life on this colony ship. Without her, ... it's just another machina lost in space."

"Well, has anyone at least tried to talk to her? She seems so frightened and unhappy. Can't we pull her out of there and let her exist somewhere else?"

"'Via Infinito' means 'Infinite Way' in one of the Founder's ancient tongues. Her infinite unrest is what works to give us sustainable life."

"That's horrible," Yuna protested.

"Then you understand now why this knowledge is a burden, and why most Spirans shouldn't have to carry its weight." Baralai gently confronted her. "Do you see now why her spheres must not fall into the wrong hands? If anyone tries to send her, or manipulate her, it will be the end of all of us - even if their intentions are to spare her."

"This ... is recorded in spheres?"

"There are not many left, and they are incomplete."

"May we see them?"

"Yuna." Baralai was becoming exasperated, but he remained patient with her. "Seeing her will only increase your compassion, but there is nothing you can do for her."

"So, we just ignore her pain?"

Baralai gave a troubled sigh. "No, we protect it, … so that everyone else on Spira has a chance to live."

"It doesn't seem fair."

"It's not fair," he agreed with her. "But that's the truth of the matter. The ship's magical energy must be balanced, and Spira is part of that. And now that I've told you, you must try to forget about it. We don't want people panicking or trying to misuse her to their advantage. People are still trying to rebuild their lives in the wake of Sin, and none of us are prepared to handle all the consequences if this information goes public right now." A strange silence settled over the room. "I have to be going," he finally said and headed for the door again. "Please, ... don't make me have to use force to make sure this remains a secret. You're my friends, but ... I will do what I have to do to protect her, for the sake of the greater majority." Baralai gave them a formal bow and then let himself out of the cabin to exit the airship.

))((

Unusual silence surrounded the crew as he left. Paine rubbed a chill from her arms and went back to the bar to sit down. Rikku sat down beside her, tucked her over-sized nightshirt between her knees and dropped her chin into her hand.

"Well, Gullwings," Cid broke the silence. "That means we keep a tight lid on this thing, right?"

"Rrrright!" Brother seconded. "Although, I would still like to know how they got the elder drakes down there." He rubbed his chin.

"Well, it's past my bedtime, and we have a sphere to hunt tomorrow bright and early. I'm going to bed." Shinra waddled back into the barracks and climbed up onto his bunk.

"Maybe we can send another watcher down there later on when Baralai's not looking," Buddy suggested to Yuna.

"No, no, ... don't anger him. He's got enough on his mind right now," she thoughtfully answered. Unable to think of anything further to say about the temple's Secret Hell, or the unfortunate raid, Yuna sighed and turned her attention back toward Tidus.

Without a word, he returned to the sink, picked up a cloth to moisten under the tap water, and returned to cleaning his remaining wounds.

Yuna felt guilty for spending her evening hunting for music when he had been fighting for his life, but now she felt even more guilty knowing a soul lived in torment just so she could breath, sleep, and eat. Noticing he was having trouble cleaning the stains from his back, she wet another cloth and helped him. Baralai had healed the wound so cleverly that she could barely see any scar, but the faint line she did see made her uneasy - it could have been deadly. Could Tidus die like everyone else? She began to wonder how things were different for him in that respect, since he was made of magic, when she realized the silver Abes necklace he always wore was gone. "Where's your chain?"

Tidus put a finger to his lips, checked outside to see if anyone was paying attention to them anymore, then closed the bathroom door. Digging into his pocket, he showed her the familiar chain and passed it to her, along with the matching silver earring he always wore. "Find a place to hide them."

The chain slipped between her fingers like liquid silver. "Why?"

"I'm the one that found the cloth with those markings Baralai mentioned. The one he didn't know is the symbol for the Zanarkand Abes. I was lucky to find it before he did and take off the jewelry, but if he makes a connection between the thieves and me wearing the same symbol, I might get blamed for what happened tonight."

"How could anyone else know about the Zanarkand Abes?"

He sighed with discouragement. "I don't know."

"Do you think they're also from ... the dream? Maybe?"

"No," he shook his head. "The Fayth wouldn't create a bunch of thieves to steal spheres. They're the ones that told us to collect them into a library in the first place."

"Yes, I suppose that sounds more like Trema, collecting them so he could destroy them."

"Unless there's some other psychotic sphere hunter out there who would prefer to destroy his own collection."

Yuna raised a hand to her mouth in astonishment. "Didn't Baralai say that one of the markings was from the Seekers? Maybe some of the original Seekers are behind this. What if some of them shared Trema's ideas and -"

"- tried to pick up where Trema left off," he finished with her. He considered her reasoning. "It would explain the attempt to steal the spheres from the temple, but ... why would they be wearing an Abes symbol if they're trying to destroy the past?"

"Hey! What are you two doing in there? Other people might need to get in there, you know." Rikku's voice came from outside the door.

Tidus put a finger to his lips and pointed to his necklace, indicating she shouldn't say anything to anyone until they knew more about the origins of the other Abes symbols.

"Leave 'em alone," they could hear Paine respond from the bar.

"But they might be making out or something?" Rikku complained.

Yuna and Tidus looked at each other in mute surprise, but then quietly snickered. "Ah, just a minute! I'm ... healing his arm." Yuna slipped the necklace and earring into her pocket. Then, she cleaned the blood from the bullet wound in his arm and focused a cure spell over the area to dissolve the bullet and mend the flesh. After clearing away the dirty cloths, she paused to wrap her arms around him. "I could have lost you again tonight. I'm so glad you're okay."

Tidus pressed his cheek against her hair and breathed in the scent of her perfume until she pulled away to kiss him. "Ah-tch!" He winced and drew back in pain. Then he dabbed lightly at his busted lip with his fingertips.

"Oh, sorry! I'm so sorry." Yuna drew back apologetically. "Somone hit you pretty good, huh? Why do people always aim for the face in a fight?"

"Probably because it _hurts_."

She pouted sympathetically, then kissed her finger and touched sore area, allowing her white magic to cool the sting and draw the flesh back together. Rinsing another rag, she wiped the blood from his face and jaw, smiling to herself at the way he closed his eyes when the soothing warmth touched the tender bruise. "Better?"

"Better." He drew her into his arms. "Hey, if they think they know what we're doing in here, maybe we shouldn't disappoint them," he suggested with a teasing kiss.

Yuna's heart sped up as time seemed to slow down. Drawing him closer, she sank into him with a sigh, but reminded herself not to hold her breath this time. Marathon kisses were, apparently, one of the hazards of dating a blitzball player. She didn't mind.

"Okay! I don't care what you're doing in there! I'm coming in because I gotta go!" Rikku warned through the door before she popped it open.

"Excuse me," Tidus told Yuna as he released her. Stepping around her and planting a hand against Rikku's forehead, he pushed her back out.

"Now, just a minute!" the small thief protested.

Tidus shut the door, locked it, and returned to Yuna. "Where were we?" he grinned.

Yuna laughed. "What are you doing? You can't do that to her."

"I just did." He shrugged indifferently, then stole another kiss.

"Hey!" Rikku yelled from the other side of the door and banged on it with her fist. "Take it to the beach or something! I can't wait all night!"

Yuna laughed again at his attempts to ignore the younger girl, but then gave him a mildly scolding look and left his side to reach for the door.

"Don't touch the lock - don't touch it!" He reached around her waist to try to pull her hands away from it.

Still laughing, Yuna swatted his hands away. "Tidus, you can't just lock someone out of the toilet. She might really have to go."

"Aw, man!" Tidus groaned in disgust as Yuna undid the latch and opened the door.

"_Shame_ on you for locking me out!" Rikku marched in and pointed a finger in his face. "You shouldn't be doing that in a room we have to share!"

"Well, then that would be the entire airship, wouldn't it?" he retorted, annoyed they had been interrupted again. "You're just jealous because you didn't get a kiss from Baralai after you healed him."

Rikku could have dropped a cow. "_What?_"

"You know, I have to say, Rikku, … Baralai does treat you very sweetly," Yuna noted.

"Yeah, too bad you had to come downstairs wearing that nasty, frumpy shirt and no make-up, or he might have thanked you differently before he left," Tidus continued. "Oh, and the moogle slippers were the icing on the cake, let me tell ya. Nothing sticks in a guy's memory better than a pair of moogly eyes getting to look up a girl's nightshirt."

From the bar, they could hear muffled laughter from the rest of the crew at his comeback.

Horrified at how right he was, Rikki looked down at her slippers and pulled the hem of her nightshirt taught to block the moogly view. "Tidus! _Shut up_ and get _out _of the bathroom!" Rikku smacked his shoulder for the teasing, then swerved behind him and shoved him out. Picking his shirt up off the floor, she pitched it at him and then slammed the door behind her.

Tidus snickered at how well his attempt to rile her worked, but then picked up the remainder of his basilisk armor and carried it up the stairs to the loft.

Yuna looked to Paine, both of them trying not to laugh, before she followed him upstairs. "She will never be able to wear those moogle slippers again, you know."

"Oh, she deserved that, and you know it, … banging on the door that way." He dumped his armor on the floor at the foot of his futon and removed the remaining boots and greaves. Deciding the black shorts worn beneath the greaves were comfortable enough to sleep in, he didn't bother to change into another sphere before dropping onto his mattress in exhaustion. "How am I supposed to fix my armor before putting it back in the warrior sphere?"

"I'm sure Shinra can fix it for you." Yuna was still amused at his teasing of Rikku, but she certainly wasn't going to congratulate him for it. Instead, she chuckled to herself and removed his jewelry from her pocket to place in a drawer beneath her clothing.

"Anybody mind if I go ahead and turn out lights?" Paine asked as she came up the stairs behind Yuna. The other crew members had gone back to their bunks as soon as Tidus and Yuna disappeared behind the shut door. Only Rikku remained downstairs.

"Be my guest. I'm certainly not staying up late tonight." Tidus rubbed his aching arms and folded one over his pillow as the room dimmed into shadows.

"Goodnight." Yuna gave him a kiss and started to walk away, but he snagged her wrist.

"Baralai told me something very interesting tonight about you and the chairman's son - something I'd rather have heard from you. Were you ever going to tell me about it?" he asked, making room for her to sit beside him.

Yuna smiled and sat on the edge of the futon, lowering her voice to a hushed tone so that the others could sleep. "There's nothing much to tell. The chairman's son asked me to marry him, and I turned him down."

"Why?"

"It was a political move on his part, and I was in love with someone else."

Tidus smiled sleepily at her. "But what if I hadn't come back?"

Yuna giggled to herself. "Who said anything about it being you?"

"You were holding out for Brother?"

"Ssshh." She gave him a light swat for being mean. Teasing aside, she was glad the dark of night hid the color rising in her cheeks. "You know, … when you told me you'd be with me always, ... I believed you. But, more than that, ... I guess I just didn't think I could ever be happy with anyone else. It was only two years, but I would have waited a hundred more, if I had to."

As she curled against him in the darkness and nuzzled into his neck just to be near him, Tidus allowed himself a small, comforted smile. "Well, I meant it. I _will_ be with you always," he promised again, in a tone barely above a whisper. "Beyond the Farplane, ... beyond the dream, ... across time ..."

Yuna rested her ear on his collar bone and closed her eyes to listen to the resonance of his voice over the sound of his heartbeat.

"Whatever happens, I'll find you. And I'll come back to you, ... because I love you."

))((

The following morning, Buddy, Shinra, and Brother returned to Bevelle to work under the temple with Gippal and his Machine Faction. As soon as they showed up, Gippal flagged them down and led them to the Heart of the Farplane. "Following Shinra's analysis charts and tracing the source of the main cables, repair stations are set up in all the core pulse areas now. Panels are being removed to begin labeling circuit pathways and parts, but we're having trouble locating the AI still. The central processor has got to be around here somewhere because this is where all the cables lead." Gippal checked his charts again.

"Up there?" Brother pointed toward the massive, spiraling cable that twisted up from the floor of the heart into mid-air - the one in the center of the Heart of the Farplane upon which Vegnagun still rested.

"What do we do about Vegnagun?" Buddy asked. "Should we try to keep it in-tact, or break it down into little bitty parts?"

"The more bitty the better, as far as I'm concerned." Gippal retraced his steps up to Vegnagun, then stopped and looked around. He frowned and looked down at the platform he stood on before Vegnagun's skull-like, horned face. "Un-freakin-believable," he muttered in dismay.

"This is where they meet, ... right?" Shinra asked, looking down at the floor beneath them.

"But I don't see anything," Brother stated the obvious. "Maybe Vegnagun is sitting on it?"

"An AI unit for machina this big would be too big for sitting on, ... wouldn't it?" Buddy countered.

Gippal checked his printouts again and looked around in dismay. "All these cables can't come to a dead end right here."

Shinra, Brother, and Buddy gave each other uneasy glances. The word "impossible" came to mind.

With a disgusted sigh, Gippal rolled up the spec sheet and passed it to Buddy. "Shinra, send a couple of watchers down the sides of this platform and check for anything irregular there. Call in a couple of soldier machina and a back up disassembly team, so we can get this done more quickly. Buddy, see if you can tear up this platform and go down into one of the cables that way. It makes no sense for them to lead to nothing. Every cable we've traced from the pump leads to this one place. Brother, you and I have some pest control to take care of." Gippal walked with Brother toward Vegnagun.

"Looks like a demonic butterfly." Brother made a face, stopped, and began to unpack his tools.

"Really?" Gippal tilted his chin and blinked at the monstrous weapon for a moment. "I thought it looked kinda like Nooj on a bad hair day." He shrugged and accepted some tools from him. "Alrighty, then. Let's get rid of this thing once and for all." He strode toward Vegnagun, ready to take it on once more - this time, with some screw drivers, a hammer, and a wrench.


	16. Chapter 16: Sphere Hunters

Chapter 16: Sphere Hunters

The ocean water surrounding the Baaj temple looked particularly green in the morning light. Centuries of algae accumulation on the sunken structures contributed to the emerald color. Beneath the crumbling stone path, it was easy to see the portion of the drowned temple that attracted water fiends. Tidus, Yuna, Paine, and Rikku stood on the edge looking down into the murky depths, wondering about the best way to get past those fiends safely.

"Paine and I can go first and take out the big one," Tidus suggested, drawing Brotherhood.

"Wait, I've got a better idea." Rikku activated her garment grid and magic enveloped her, redressing her in orange and blue armor. She walked to the edge of the stones, hefted the large gun in her hands, and fired several choice rounds of different ammunition.

Tidus looked at his sword, shrugged and sheathed it once again, folding his arms at his chest to let Rikku's gun take care of business from a safe distance.

"Rikku." Paine noticed that the largest fiend was beginning to glow with an aura of magic.

Rikku stopped shooting and reached into her utility belt to grab two small vials of alchemical ingredients. With an expert flick of her wrist, she opened one vial and capped it into the other. Giving it a light shake, she tossed it into the water.

"Rikku!" Paine yelled.

Too late ... Rikku's bomb hit the water at the same time that the fiend's magical energy charged. The resulting explosion sent a tidal wave over their heads that flushed them off of the stones and into the depths below. The large fiend split into a swarm of pyre flies, but the smaller fiends surrounded them in its place. Sahagin and piranha began to bite and claw at them as they swam their way toward the underwater entrance to the sunken temple. The battles were small and quick, but repetitive, wasting precious air time. Swimming down to the bottom, they found the submerged entrance to the ruins, but they still had to swim back up the entry passages until they could reach the air trapped inside.

Rikku gasped loudly for breath when she reached the top of the stairs and dragged herself onto the damp, stone floor above the water. Then, she collapsed on her stomach to catch her breath.

Paine coughed up sea water that she had managed to swallow, but then, she snarled toward their alchemist. "Rikku, couldn't you see that thing was getting ready to throw a spell at us?"

"Well, ... after I tossed the bomb." She sniffled. "But, it worked, didn't it?"

As she climbed onto the slippery stones above the flooded entrance, Yuna sneezed, coughed, and sneezed again, … repeatedly.

Tidus walked up the steps as easily as if he had just come from a stroll in the park and crouched before her with a grin. "They're right. You do sound like a squatter monkey."

Yuna cast him a baleful glance, but then laughed at her own inability to handle harsh swimming conditions. Sniffling and sneezing once more, she accepted his extended arms to try to stand. Smoothing her wet hair against her head and neck, she blinked the last of the stinging salt-water from her eyes and looked around. It was cold down in these ruins - really cold - and she found herself wishing she'd worn more than the bikini and short skirt from her thief sphere.

Baaj had been a horrible place when they came to summon Anima, and it was still just as horrible the second time around. Dark, except for the glow of magical runes and their watery reflections, this ruined temple of a forgotten age perfectly suited the deformed and tormented aeon that had called it home. The chamber of the Fayth was still unlocked and opened from the last time they were here, but no one would be summoning Anima anymore.

Yuna walked to the woman's tomb to find it gone like all the other aeons Shuyin had tainted. As she gazed at the pyre flies rising from the void where it should have been, a forgotten fear crept over her once more and she checked over her shoulder with worry.

Tidus stood at the back of the chamber near the doorway, keeping his distance. It was a painful reminder that he would never be completely human like his friends, but one that he could live with as long as he stayed clear of the exposed entrances to the Farplane. "I'll just ... check out the main ... area." He excused himself from the uncomfortable room to a safer place, even if that safer place was possibly haunted with fiends.

Sighing with relief that he remembered to be cautious about his vulnerability to spirit magic, Yuna walked around the room with Rikku and Paine searching for any kind of clue about the sphere that Buddy's scanner detected here.

"Check it out." Paine had found a small chest among the toppled columns and pried it open to find a stunning necklace inside. Rikku and Yuna came to her shoulder and were awed at its sparkling beauty. "Think maybe it belonged to Seymour's mother?"

"I'm almost certain." Yuna sadly reached a finger to touch the precious item. "He was exiled here with her, by the guado, for being half-human. This temple was probably their home. If it belonged to Anima, I don't think we should be taking it. I mean, in spite of everything, I wouldn't want to dishonor his mother. Her aeon served me faithfully when I needed her. All we came for was the sphere."

Paine replaced the necklace in the chest and set it back where she found it.

))((

While the three girls roamed the Chamber of the Fayth, Tidus explored the antechamber. Crawling over the fallen columns and climbing the large stone blocks, he found a hidden passage leading back up into what used to be the main entrance of the temple. This was where he had first met Rikku. Smirking lightly at the memory, he crossed the faded, brown fresco in the circular floor.

Tracing his previous footsteps, he walked to a grotesque statue and touched its carved teeth, then he gazed up at the waterfall-like leak that streamed through a large crack in the ceiling. Water still puddled all over the floor, and chilly mist still hung in the air. Cold, still ...

He pulled the hood of his yellow Abes shirt over his head and shivered. Then, he found the back passage which he remembered leading to a balcony where he found some flint and dried flowers to make a small fire. Hopping over the chunks of fallen debris that blocked the path, he made his way to the entrance of the one tower that rose tall above the water still. Its tiny window was open to the air outside, letting the sun, or rain, into an otherwise very enclosed place. It was there that he noticed an old chest tucked under one of the fallen support columns. Pausing before it, he crouched and pushed it open. The largest memory sphere he had ever seen was inside.

Carefully, he lifted it out and carried it with him back down to the Chamber of the Fayth. "I think I found it," he announced. Sitting down cross-legged on the floor, he placed it in front of him and touched the activation button.

As the sphere hummed to life, planets and stars swirled around them in a breathtaking, larger-than-life display. Yuna and Rikku were just as awed by it now as they had been the first time they saw it. Paine, seeing it for the first time, turned around with equally child-like wonder, trying to see it all.

Tidus stared from one side of the city view to the other and felt something stir within his soul. It had been so long since he'd seen it. "Zanarkand."

))((

Seagulls glided lazily over the pink coral building occupied by the members of the Youth League east of Kilika Port. The breeze carried the scent of grilled fish from the rebuilt village across the small bay as Yuna, Tidus, Rikku and Paine arrived at the docks and stepped out of the boat that had brought them there.

"Did you see the way people were staring at us?" Tidus spoke to Yuna as they ascended the sloping semi-spiral walkway to the front door of the complex.

"I'm trying not to," she admitted, still slightly uncomfortable with fame.

"It's because of me, isn't it? They think I'm unsent now, don't they?" He felt guilty about drawing that kind of attention to her or anyone else.

Rikku giggled as she followed him up the stairs. "Maybe they're just staring because they think you have a cute hiney."

Tidus abruptly stopped and turned. "You're looking at my butt?"

"You're in front of me on the stairs. What else is there to look at?" She partially stuck her tongue out at him for not appreciating her joke.

"You want to go ahead of me?" he sardonically offered.

"No, because then you'll look up my skirt."

"Well, at least I won't _tell_ you I'm doing it."

The small thief gasped. "Have you been doing that all along?" she demanded in an accusatory tone.

Paine folded her arms and shifted her stance, waiting for him to unblock the stairs. "At least Rikku isn't using binoculars."

"You stay out of this," he told her over the thief's head and shoulders.

"I caught him using my binoculars to scope out backsides rather than the high cables under the temple when we went to talk to Bahamut," the warrior women explained.

Rikku met Tidus with an immediate, disapproving frown.

Yuna laughed and shook her head at their argument, but put a hand to the back of her own skirt as she finished climbing the stairs.

"Now look what you did," Tidus gumbled to Paine and Rikku before ascending the remaining stairs, sideways and self-conscious.

The Gullwings presented themselves to the guards and were led straight to the main office. Meyvn Nooj was seated at his desk, but he was staring out the window at the ocean rather than attending to any business. "Come in." He motioned to the seating area within the room, once he noticed he had company.

Yuna and her friends filed into the room to stand before him at his desk. She bowed in greeting and lifted the large sphere in both hands to place on his desk. "We would like to present this to the library project. It's Maester Seymour's Zanarkand sphere - the best sphere we've seen to date of the city before it fell."

Nooj's haunted eyes shifted from the sphere to the blond young man at the back of the group. "Why give it to me? Isn't our _expert_ supposed to be taking Zanarkand things to Kimahri?"

"Yes, but we thought we'd show it to you before taking it to him." She touched the activation button on the side and the entire room lit up with Zanarkand.

Nooj, however, turned it back off. "I have half a mind to tell you to take all the spheres to Kimahri."

Yuna glanced to Paine, wondering what he meant by that, but Paine's expression was hard to read.

"How do you plan to do that? You know Baralai won't just hand over New Yevon's spheres," Paine stated the obvious with caution.

"Well, we could always storm the temple again, but that would put us a few paces back in negotiations with him," he returned in the same measured tone.

"Or, you could just hire thieves to do it for you."

Nooj met her blunt suggestion without flinching. "I heard what happened, and he can't say I didn't warn him. This is what comes of storing all the spheres under one roof away from public access."

"Do you know anything about the thieves?"

Nooj gave his female friend a scrutinizing stare. "Baralai thinks I'm behind it, doesn't he?"

"Youth League insignia was found on one of them."

"Well, you can tell him I started my own investigation as soon as I found out about it. I don't know about any insignia found on them, but they used Machine Faction weapons, and two of them were legitimate guards hired by the temple. They must have let the others in."

"Machine Faction?" Rikku blinked with alarm. "Gippal wouldn't do anything like this."

"I've already contacted Gippal about it. He swears he has no connections, so he's trying to find out who could have supplied the tools. Whoever's behind this has been able to infiltrate all three of our organizations. Whoever it is must be a real puppeteer who knows how to pull the right strings at the right time." His glance shifted to Tidus.

Tidus took offense at suddenly coming into focus. "Well, don't look at me."

"Didn't happen until you showed up, and we all know what a master manipulator Shuyin was at making insiders do things for him."

"I am _not_ Shuyin." Tidus frowned, but moved closer to Nooj. "They beat the crap out of me last night while I was pulling guard duty with Baralai. If I'm the puppet master, why would I do that to myself?"

"To get Baralai away from the door so you could study a way to crack the code? To appear innocent, so that you're not blamed and I am? I don't know. You tell me." Nooj sardonically answered.

"Then why didn't I just bust down the door and take the spheres while I was guarding them?"

"Too obvious. Better to blame _me_ while you build a strong alibi."

"You know, ... forget it." Fed up with having to put up with this kind of thing, Tidus turned to Yuna. "I'm waiting outside." He frowned deeply at Nooj and left without another word.

Paine sat on the corner of the desk and gave Nooj a look of reprimand. "Well, that was rather nasty."

He wasn't bothered with whether he'd offended Tidus or not. "It was necessary."

"Why?" Yuna was becoming angry, but she remained calm, as always.

"Because I don't care what you say, I sense Shuyin in him. Believe it or not, I know Shuyin better than you do."

"You don't have very much faith in forgiveness, do you?" Yuna quietly challenged him.

Nooj leaned on the desk, flexed his mechanical fingers, and interlaced them with his hand of flesh and bone. "Then you admit he's done things that need to be forgiven?"

Yuna sighed. Nooj saw withheld information as a type of mistrust in itself. "He was summoned from the light part of Shuyin's soul." There, she said it. "But he is not unsent. He comes from the dream of the Fayth - just as we told you before - but he is his own person. _Please_, ... don't judge him by Shuyin's choices."

Nooj settled back in his chair to digest the truth that he had suspected all along, though it wasn't quite the way he expected it. "He told Baralai, Shuyin was his brother."

"In a sense, he is. That's how Shuyin told him to think of him."

"Shuyin in any form is not welcome in my neck of the woods." Nooj reached for his cane and stood. Then, he picked up the large Zanarkand sphere and limped toward Yuna to give it back to her. "This isn't safe here. Take it to Kimahri if you want to protect it. The thieves will probably try to strike again."

"How do you know?" Yuna asked, accepting the sphere in her arms and folding it to her chest.

Nooj's brow furrowed above his thin, wire glasses. "They failed to get what they wanted the first time. That alone is enough."

Leblanc entered the room and raised a brow at Nooj's company, but then she ignored the female trio and haughtily walked to his side. Nooj didn't seem to enjoy her presence, but he didn't seem to mind, either.

Yuna wondered if she should say anything about the other symbols. "Would you happen to know if there are any former Seekers still running around? Tidus said he saw a Seeker insignia on the same cloth that held the Youth League symbol."

Leblanc smoothed the fur overlay on Nooj's shoulder and sleeve. "The Seekers disbanded, love. They hunt spheres independently like the rest of us nowadays. That's yesterday's news. Have you been living under a rock?"

"No, but apparently you have," Paine retorted. "You know all kinds of juicy, scummy secrets about other sphere guilds, don't you?"

Leblanc snorted and opened her fan to cool herself at the insult.

"Do you know of any active Seekers?" Paine persisted.

"Well, if I did, I certainly wouldn't tell you." The blond drama queen planted her hand on her hip and looked away.

"You'd _better_ tell us." Rikku angered.

Nooj held his patience with the woman at his side. "Leblanc, if you know something, you need to tell us. The Youth League is going to be blamed for this if we can't find out who's responsible."

Leblanc closed her fan and sighed heavily. "Oh, very well. Rumor has it that one of the former Seekers has started a new guild called the ... " She tapped her fan against her chin trying to remember. "Well, I've forgotten their name, and it was funny sounding, anyway. But supposedly they've stolen spheres from other sphere hunters. I'm not sure how much of it is true, but their reputation is off to a notorious start. Oh, wait, ... Echo Alliance. That's what they're called - the Echo Alliance." Leblanc was pleased with herself for remembering.

Yuna mentally lined up the three symbols and tried to envision them as a code - Youth League, Seekers, Abes. It did sort of make the newer group of truth seekers seem like an echo from the past, but ... the Abes? What did blitzball have to do with anything? Maybe it was meant to represent Zanarkand, in general.

"Do you know anything else about them?" Nooj asked of Leblanc. When she shook her head, he tried a new angle. "Can you _try_ to find out more about them?"

"I can do anything for my Noojie-Woojie." She gave him a sly smile and hugged his arm.

Nooj took this into consideration since Baralai had apparently kept that clue cloth to himself. "If you'll excuse me. I think I'm going to pass this news along to Gippal and see if it helps him identify who used his tools." Nooj looked at Leblanc, giving her a silent message to release him. Then, he met the gaze of his three guests and left the room.

"You know, if there's nothing else you girls wanted, you can leave now." Leblanc dismissed them and began fanning herself once more. "Anything else I have to say is for Noojie, and he can choose whether he wants to pass it on to you, or not."

"Well, actually, we did come here to see you, too," Yuna spoke. "I'm looking for Zanarkand spheres - particularly spheres that have music in them. It's for the concert at the opening of the library in Zanarkand. I thought it would be a good way to honor the people who died there to include some of their songs. Would you happen to know of any?"

"Zanarkand spheres are rare enough, love. But Zanarkand _music_ spheres? Hah! Even if they exist, who would want to listen to them? They'd be so out of date no one would even know how to dance to them." Leblanc examined a nail that looked likely to break.

Yuna persisted. "The song that I sang at my last concert was from Zanarkand, … sort of. Everyone liked that."

Leblanc snorted. "That's because of that whole sky-theatrical-display thing. But honestly, singing songs from a bunch of dead people is rather morbid, isn't is? And speaking of Zanarkand ghosts, how's your little boyfriend getting along these days? Seen anymore of Shuyin?"

"_Tidus _is doing just fine," Yuna answered with a perfunctory smile. "He's started off a new blitzball career with a win for the Aurochs, and he's helping me hunt spheres for the Zanarkand project."

Leblanc tapped her fan thoughtfully against her chin. "Hm. Not what I heard. I heard people are beginning to get upset that he's unsent."

Yuna's brows dipped in anger again. "Who told you he was unsent?"

Leblanc laughed. "Nobody had to tell me, love. I saw it with my own two eyes. That boy _is_ Shuyin. And when Noojie said that he was from Zanarkand, well that just confirmed it, didn't it?"

Yuna's eyes narrowed slightly. "Nooj told you he was from Zanarkand?"


	17. Chapter 17: Unsent

Chapter 17: Unsent

Leblanc was annoyed with the Gullwings, but that was nothing new. "Nooj said your little boyfriend told everyone at the council he was from Zanarkand. If he didn't want the heat, then he shouldn't have spoken the fire spell," she haughtily explained to Yuna.

"We had to tell everyone at the meeting where Tidus came from because Nooj and Baralai kept insisting that he was Shuyin," Yuna angrily answered. "That didn't give Nooj the right to tell you. Did he tell anyone else?"

"Of course not. " Leblanc waved it off. "Do you think he has time to waste on tabloid headlines or interviews for mystery exposés?"

Yuna's mouth dropped open. "_You're_ the one that started those rumors!"

"_Me_? Why would I spread rumors about your boyfriend?"

Rikku pointed a finger of accusation at her. "Because of what Shuyin did to your Noojie."

Passing the Zanarkand sphere to Paine and planting her fists on her hips, Yuna moved closer to Leblanc as she confronted her. "You knew Sunsa was doing that interview for a mystery exposé. She used those exact words when talking about it."

"Don't be preposterous. Everyone saw that interview after the game in Luca." She unfurled her fan and began fanning the heat from her face. Leblanc intended to walk away, but Yuna caught her wrist.

"She didn't say them on camera. She said them to me, ... _after_ she stopped interviewing Tidus."

"Did Nooj put you up to it?" Paine asked, quirking a brow.

"Of course not! He didn't even know I was in Bevelle that day!" Leblanc's eyes widened, and her hands instantly covered her mouth.

All three Gullwings narrowed their eyes on her.

"That was a dirty thing to do to him," Yuna scolded Leblanc. "People are afraid of him now when they have no reason to be."

"From what I saw, they do. He takes over people's bodies!" Leblanc snapped in her face.

"That was Shuyin - not Tidus!" Yuna became uncharacteristically loud.

"Now, now!" Leblanc smiled in embarrassment, trying to calm the ex-summoner. "I didn't _intentionally_ rat on him, okay? I just happened to be in Bevelle that day, so I called Noojie to see if he wanted to do lunch. But he declined without even hearing me out because he was so angry about you inviting Shuyin - or Tidus or whoever he is - to the meeting. He said you'd left the meeting without warning, and yet I saw you strolling with him through the park. So, I called up some friends for lunch instead, and one of them suggested that Noojie hire a reporter to investigate. I knew he wouldn't ask for help, so I did it for him. You know how it is when you're upset that your man is upset, but you can't be upset about it to him or he'll get upset."

Rikku wrinkled her nose missing half of that. "Eh? Wait, you told your friends, _too_?"

"Sunsa was supposed to investigate off the record, … not on camera. That was _her_ idea, not mine. Look, just don't pin this on Nooj, okay?" Leblanc begged. "It's bad enough he's going to be blamed for the temple theft."

Yuna, still holding Leblanc's wrist, led her to the door. "You're going to take it back," she determined. "You're going to apologize to Tidus."

Leblanc slapped at Yuna's hand with her fan. "I'm not getting anywhere near him. I saw what happened to him in the Farplane at Guadosalam. Regardless of what name he goes by, he changed into Shuyin!"

Yuna gave her arm a firm jerk at the same time that Paine and Rikku gave her shoulders a firm shove. Between the three of them, they successfully moved Leblanc through the lobby, threw open the front doors, and dragged her outside. Then, they escorted her down the stairs to the dock, where Tidus sat on the edge of the pier waiting for them.

He had taken off his shoes to cool his feet in the water while he cooled his temper after the flare-up with Nooj, but now he couldn't begin to guess what was brewing as the four women stood over him with volitile expressions.

"Say something." Yuna gave Leblanc's arm a small pinch.

"Ouch! Stop that!" She swatted Yuna with her fan. Then, with an obligatory sigh, she lifted her chin with pride and addressed him. "I'm sorry I told my friends you were unsent, and I'm sorry I called Sunsa to investigate you. It won't happen again." She turned to immediately leave, but found herself blocked by Paine's rock-solid presence instead.

Tidus stood to face Leblanc. "_You're_ the one who told Sunsa I was unsent? Why? What did I ever do to you?"

"Shuyin possessed Nooj!" Leblanc angrily snapped at him. "And if you're him then, ... then, ..." She growled and smacked him with her fan, for good measure.

Tidus's quick reflexes caught the hand holding the fan and pulled her toward him. He was silent, but his darkening glare could have sliced right through her.

Fearing he was going to become possessed at any moment, Leblanc changed her tune. "Look I didn't mean it to turn into all this. I didn't know she was going to take it public."

"I think we should make you go on the com sphere in Luca and tell everyone what you did." Yuna folded her arms at her chest. "And while you're at it, you can tell everyone why Tidus is not unsent."

"I say we make her our personal slave until it dies down," Paine suggested.

Ready to seek retribution with some kind of glorious plan, Rikku eagerly rubbed her hands together. "Tidus, what do you think we should do to her?"

Tidus continued to give Leblanc an angry glare, but then released her with disgust and turned his back on her. "Let her go," he said, gazing toward the village with its peaceful palm huts and bamboo bridges.

"Eh?" Rikku blinked wondering if she'd heard him right. "You sent me to scoop chocobo poop for making you chase a monkey, but you're letting her go free after spreading nasty rumors that nearly ruined your reputation?"

"There's nothing she can do to take it back. I just want to go home." He picked up his shoes and climbed into the boat where he stubbornly waited for his companions to join him.

After giving Leblanc various dirty looks, Rikku, Paine, and Yuna all reluctantly filed into the boat. Leblanc remained on the dock, stunned at his verdict, as the ferryman rowed them back to the village.

))((

The Gullwings crew that had come with Tidus to the second Aurochs game of the season, headed down the crowded walkways of Luca into the central stadium area. The scent of festival foods filled the air. Excited laughter and shouts echoed from the stadium and all around the sunburst layout of the docks. A game merchandise salesman had set up his cart outside of the ticket sales store, and autograph seekers grouped around the locker room basements as usual, hoping to catch a word from passing players.

As they rounded the corner near the stairs, Tidus had to part ways with his friends. "I gotta hurry, or Wakka's going to hit the roof again," he told them.

"Wait! We have to buy our tickets first, so you'll know where we're sitting," Yuna protested.

"Just whistle like you did last time. I'll find you." He grinned with confidence.

"Good luck!" She kissed his cheek and then hurried to get in line behind Buddy and Paine.

Tidus waved to them, and continued on his way to the locker room. "'Excuse me! Hey, coming through!" He called to the people blocking the entrance.

The people parted for him to pass, but then saw the Aurochs uniform.

"Hey, he's one of the players! Do you have time for an autograph?"

"Me, too!"

"Pleeeese."

"Hey, I was here first."

"Wakka's going to kill me if I stop," Tidus muttered to himself as he tried to ignore the crowd and keep moving. "Shouldn't stop. Don't stop. ... Nope, not stopping."

"Isn't he the new Aurochs captain?"

"He's the one that did that shot from really high above the sphere pool last time, remember?"

"Are you going to do that shot again?"

"I'm rooting for the Aurochs this time!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm running late again." He apologized to the crowd. "I'll try to hang around after the game, okay? I can sign things then." Turning around to continue on his way, he nearly stumbled over a little girl with blond curls, who squinted her eyes tight at the hustle around her and held up a blitzball that was almost bigger than she was. Tidus sighed in defeat, then chuckled at her determination. "Got a pen?" he asked as he crouched to accept the ball.

"I do! I do!" someone shouted. A dozen pens were thrust at him all at once.

He accepted one of them with a nod of thanks and scrawled his completely illegible signature across the nubbly surface of the blitzball. "What's your name, gorgeous?"

"Rukiina," the small girl informed him with a big grin. "R-U-K-I-I-N-A. That's two _i'_s'." She pressed a matchstick-thin finger into the ball to make sure he spelled it right.

To pacify her, Tidus used big, clear letters to write her name above his. "Okay, Rukiina with two _i'_s! There you go." He started to hand the ball back, but then changed his mind and pulled it out of her reach. "Who are you going to cheer for?"

"The Aurochs."

"What?" he loudly asked. "I can't hear you!"

"The Aurochs!" she yelled back.

He held the ball toward her once more, but then withdrew it again. "Let me see how you're going to do it."

The little girl wiggled and screamed and jumped around in a circle.

"All right! That's it! Woo hoo!" He finally passed the ball to her and imitated her little dance, making her giggle. "Okay, get out of here. I got a game to play." But as he tried to walk away, more paper scraps and blitzballs were thrust toward him.

A girl that looked only a few years younger than him stepped up in line and bared her shoulder. "I don't have a ball or paper, but ... could I have an autograph anyway?"

Tidus blinked at her with doubt, but then shook his head and grinned. "You gotta show me how you're gonna cheer first."

She laughed in embarrassment then gave a little cheer. "Yay!"

He folded his arms at his chest and made a face. "Oh, come on. That's not even going to encourage me to get in the water."

The gathering around him laughed, and the girl tried again louder. "Woo hoo!"

"Woo hoo! That's more like it!" He imitated her cheer a little too, then scrawled his name on her shoulder. "There you go. Bring paper next time, all right? You're going to get me in trouble with my girlfriend doing this kind of thing."

Chuckles went up from the crowd, along with a few "awwws". He could hear whispers of Yuna's name going around after that, and he chuckled lightly to himself. But then another word also being whispered caught his ear.

"Unsent."

"Unsent? Are you sure?"

"That's what I heard."

"He's the one? He doesn't look unsent."

"It was him, wasn't it?"

Tidus tried to ignore the whispers and reached for the next piece of paper that was being offered to him, but he signed this one without any campy showmanship and automatically reached for another. The more he tried not to hear the whispers, the more aware of them he became.

"Didn't you hear that interview he did last week?"

"Sunsa said he was from Zanarkand."

"Lady Yuna didn't deny it. She said he'd just come home."

"It's been two years since he last played with the Aurochs."

"I heard he died defeating Sin."

"How did he come back?"

"Do you think he'll turn into a fiend?"

"A-ha! I knew I'd find you here!" a familiar voice broke through the cacophony assaulting his mind.

Tidus looked up, happy to see Wakka squeezing his way through the Auroch fans to get to him. Quickly finishing his last signature, he capped the pen and handed both items back to their owner.

"Sorry folks, but he's got to go, or he won't make the game on time!" Wakka hooked Tidus's arm to escort him through the crowd. "This is going to be a bad habit for you, ya?"

Someone grabbed Tidus's other arm. "He feels real to me."

Another hand grabbed his uniform. "But fiends are real, too, you know."

"The unsent can turn into fiends. I've seen it."

"Well, Zanarkand _is_ the City of the Dead."

Wakka became irritated at the fuss around them. "He's from Besaid."

"Why is he here if he's unsent?"

"Another unsent trying to take over Spira?"

Tidus couldn't stand it anymore and pulled away from Wakka's grasp to face his accusers. "I'm not unsent!"

"Well, there's only one way to find out, isn't there?"

Startled by the closeness of the last voice that spoke, Tidus turned and faced a tall man with sand-colored hair standing behind him. The man's hair was swept into a severe top-knot, and he was dressed in the colorful and multi-layered robes of a summoner. He smiled, but the smile did not extend to his intense, green eyes.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Luca," the strange man addressed the crowd. "There is only one true way to know whether this is a man or a monster, ... and that is to send him. Lady Yuna should do the honors herself, of course, but apparently her sense of duty has become obscured."

Wakka took note of the change in mood around them. These were no longer kids seeking autographs, but adults protecting their children and city from potential harm. "I got a bad feeling about this, ya? Go to the locker room and tell the boys we're not playing today. We gotta get you out of here."

Tidus looked to him with worry. "We can't just forfeit -"

"We got a situation here. Just go to the locker room and stay put. I'll get the rest of the gang and meet you there." Wakka pushed his way through the crowd and ran up the steps of the stadium.

With clenched fists, Tidus glared at the summoner that had called for his sending, but then he shoved his way through the crowd and ran down the stairs to the locker room. When he was inside, he shut the door behind himself and sighed with relief. The rest of the Aurochs in the room were pumped for the game. Therefore, they were surprised to see his anxious expression when he entered.

"What's up, cap'n?" Jassu asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost." His team members all laughed at his joke.

Not impressed by the ghost joke, Tidus scowled and brushed past him to his locker.

Botta chuckled. "We're just pulling your chain, man. Don't be so uptight about it. We're cool about the Zanarkand thing now, okay?"

"Yeah, well, the rest of those people out there aren't. We might have trouble brewing. Wakka says it's not a good idea to play."

The Aurochs started to protest, and Tidus started to argue back when a loud banging came on the door. People were shouting from outside. Tidus moved to the door to lock it, but he was too late. The door burst open, and concerned citizens flowed into the locker room to grab him. Tidus twisted and flipped one of his attackers over his back as Paine had taught him. When a second man tried to get a hold on him, Jassu pulled him off.

Within minutes, the locker room was in chaos. Tidus threw off as many people as he could, and the rest of the Aurochs formed a defensive ring around him. But the room continued to fill with people demanding that he be tested to prove whether he was unsent. At the back of the room, the man with the sand-colored hair summoned his magical, bladed staff, and began to dance. The crowd began to sing the "Hymn of the Fayth" and broke through the defensive ring. The Aurochs fought to free their captain as he was grabbed and pinned down, but they were blocked by other members of the rowdy crowd.

))((

"Out of the way, damn it! I said get out of my way!" Wakka started picking up people and tossing them aside to make room for the Gullwings to break through the madness.

Paine had a similarly effective manner of removing people from their path.

"Tidus!" Yuna could hear the hymn, and she could see the summoner weaving his magic for a sending, but she could not see Tidus. "Stop! Please stop! Don't send him!" She was panicked to reach him before it was too late, but when she finally pushed through the crowd to see him, pyre flies were already drifting around him joining the summoner's dance. His body, shimmering with a watery prism of color, was beginning to fade. "Tidus!" she screamed out and tried to run to him, but she was held back by those concerned for her welfare.

"It's not safe, Lady Yuna!"

"He's a fiend!"

"Just let him be sent!"

"It's better this way."

Tidus looked up at her from where he was being held on the floor. Tears streaked his face, knowing it was a fight he couldn't win. "Yuna! I'll come back! I'll find you again! I promise!"

The men holding him down didn't release their grip on him until they lost it, due to his increasing transparency.

Yuna snapped free and ran to hold onto him. If she could just hold onto him, he couldn't be sent away. But her arms and hands passed through him, just as they had before. "No!" She shook her head in heartbroken disbelief as tears began to fall. This couldn't be happening again. "_NO_!" Yuna fell to her knees in sobs as she was left in the midst of a swirl of pyre flies.

The summoner stepped forward. "Lady Yuna, forgive me, but it is for the best. Spira is for the living, ... not the dead."

Yuna sniffled and wiped her eyes, but she was unable to stop crying. Standing and struggling with her grief, she turned to face him. Eyes narrowed with unspeakable fury, she slapped him with as much sting as she could muster. Then, without a single word to anyone, she ran out of the locker room and all the way back to the Celsius, … alone.


	18. Chapter 18: Pieces

Chapter 18: Pieces

Rikku took a tray of food up to Yuna and found her collapsed on her bed, … just as she had been an hour ago. She set the tray on the chest by the bed and sat by her cousin with her arms around her for a long moment, holding her in a sad hug.

When Yuna still did not respond, Rikku sighed and returned downstairs where Paine and Lulu waited for word on her progress. The small thief could only shake her head in disappointment. Then, she found herself starting to cry again, as well.

Lulu rose from her stool at the bar and wrapped her arms around Rikku in a somewhat motherly manner.

"How's Yuna doing?" Cid asked as he came into the cabin.

"She's not speaking or eating yet," Paine reported, judging by Rikku's reaction.

"Poor kiddo. That's twice she's been through this kind of thing with him." Cid was trying to sound sympathetic, but decided against trying to speak with her since he wasn't very good with girl-talks. "Her mother should be here to help."

Rikku sniffled and thought of her aunt. If Yuna's mother hadn't been killed by Sin all those years ago, she definitely would have been helping her through it.

The cabin doors opened with a hiss and Wakka came in with Vidina sleeping on his shoulder. He was followed by Sunsa, the reporter from Luca. "Yuna up to talking, yet?" he quietly asked. The three women shook their heads in answer. Wakka sighed with disappointment. "Well, Sunsa came to the village looking for her, so I brought her here. She says she's got something for Yuna."

Lulu gave the reporter a cold glare. "Come to capture her grief on your com sphere next?"

"Lu." Wakka frowned slightly at her. "Be nice, ya?"

"No, it's okay." Sunsa stepped around the Auroch's coach to confront the three women who glared at her, but she seemed frustrated and sad that Yuna was not present. "You have every right to be angry at me. I ... know this is partially my fault for asking him about Zanarkand in the first place. I thought it would be such an amazing story to find out that someone from Zanarkand was living among us. Even when we sometimes see the dead, we don't get to talk to them, much less interact with them the way he did. He seems like a great guy. I had no idea it would turn out this way. I'm so, ... _so_ sorry. I aired Lady Yuna's interview the next morning, but I guess it wasn't enough." She looked down at the memory sphere she held in her hands and set it on the bar. "I came to give her this. One of our station's recorders was live on the scene and managed to catch most of what happened after the crowd decided to take matters into their own hands. She may not want it, but ... she can keep it if she does. Also, please tell her I am making a broadcast denouncing the manner in which this sending was done. I've already begun an investigation on the man who instigated the mob. His name is Meimo. He's a bit of an enigma, but from what I've gathered so far, he's got a reputation as a rather notorious sphere hunter."

Paine and Rikku both looked up with interest. Rikku wiped her eyes.

"This sphere would be good evidence to press criminal charges for attempted murder, but … I guess there's no law against sending spirits. I think most of the people who witnessed it were surprised that it actually worked. Tidus looked so, ... so real. And he didn't, … I mean he wasn't ..." She couldn't bring herself to compare him to an ordinary fiend the way some people did. "Anyway, just please tell her I'm sorry." Still looking very apologetic, Sunsa bowed long and low, before taking her leave of the cabin.

After she left, all eyes settled on the sphere on the bar. Rikku started to cry again. "I don't think I can bear to watch it."

Wakka sniffled and turned the sphere around. His thumb found the activation button, and the entire scene with the mob surrounding Tidus in the locker room played itself out before them one more time. "I shouldn't have left him."

Lulu took the sleeping baby from his shoulder and held him to her chest, as if trying to draw some silent comfort from just holding him. "His entire team was down there defending him. You couldn't have made any difference if you had stayed."

"Meimo ..." Paine rolled the name around in her mind. "If he's a notorious sphere hunter, I wonder if he has any connections to that new guild that Leblanc mentioned."

"Hunt him down," Lulu suggested, black brows furrowed over crimson eyes. "You might not be able to have him jailed for a sending, but if you find him, Yuna can slap the other side of his face off, too." Like a graceful storm, the black mage turned and headed for the loft to check on her.

Paine picked up the sphere and looked to Rikku. "You up for a mission?"

"Mh." Rikku sniffled with angry determination and wiped her eyes.

))((

As Pain replayed the scene in the memory sphere for Nooj and Leblanc, Rikku paced. She couldn't bear to watch it again. It was like watching someone murder him. But she did occasionally glance toward Nooj and Leblanc to read their faces for any hints of recognition. Nooj said nothing and showed no emotion, but Leblanc began to sink with a hint of guilt. When it finished, Paine found the face of the summoner, paused it, and set it directly in front of Leblanc, demanding answers.

Leblanc sighed and surrendered the information without the usual fight. "Meimo ... He's a specialist in teleportation magic who has a knack for getting in and out of places without a trace. He's been accused of stealing several spheres because of it, and he's been associated with a few underground operations."

"By underground, do you mean criminal or literal?" Paine sat on the corner of the desk and crossed her legs.

"Well, I imagine it's a little of both. Nobody trusts him. I'm surprised you haven't heard of him, loves, but I suppose it's because you're too goody-goody to keep track of other people's spheres."

"If by that you mean we're not thieves, you're correct," Paine answered with a terse frown.

"You broke into my house," Leblanc reminded her.

"To take back what you stole from us," Rikku snapped. In a huff, she turned her back on Leblanc, folded her arms, and glared at the corner of Nooj's desk, instead. A strange little device caught her attention - crystals spinning over the surface of a mirror. Leaning over it with quiet awe, she tried to figure out how the crystals were dancing on their "toes" like that. It was better than thinking of what had happened to Tidus.

"Know where we can find him?" Paine tried to stay on-topic to prevent this from melting into a tit-for-tat argument.

Leblanc shrugged. "Well, when I met him, it was during all that tourist attraction stuff in Zanarkand. He was trying to recruit sphere hunters among the amateurs wandering around."

"Any chance he could be associated with that Echo Alliance you mentioned?"

"I don't know any members of the Echo Alliance, but I suppose he could be one of them. His notoriety certainly fits the bill."

Paine faced Nooj. "If the Echo Alliance is the group behind the raid at the temple, since Tidus thwarted their attempts to steal the spheres, it could be motive for getting rid of him. Easier to dispose of someone suspected of being a fiend than the praetor of New Yevon."

Rikku paused over the crystal trinket, stunned at what Paine was suggesting. "You mean, … Tidus might have been sent because he was a witness?"

Nooj took his spinning crystals away from her before she could break them. "Have you shown this to Baralai yet?" He indicated the sphere of the sending. "Since he's a summoner, Baralai might know something about him, as well. And if what you say is true about the motive, Baralai could be the next target, regardless of his official position with the temple."

Paine frowned at this possibility. "An assassination attempt on the temple's praetor would definitely open a position in New Yevon for ex-communicated members to seep back in." The warrior turned to the thief. "I think our next stop is Bevelle. Baralai needs to see this."

The young thief nodded in eager and worried agreement. "Hopefully we're not too late."

"I'm going with you." Nooj stood and reached for his cane.

))((

Baralai watched the sphere play in its entirety. When it was done, he felt as if he was carrying the burden of the whole incident on himself. "Lady Yuna has my sincerest condolences. I may have had the same reservations about Tidus as the people in this crowd, but I would never condone this kind of ..._ madness_. Whatever he was, there was an integrity about him. He did his best to protect that vault, the night we stood watch together. Every time he got knocked down, he got back up and kept going." Resting his elbows on the desk, he folded his hands together. His index fingers extended and tapped lightly against his lips, as he debated with himself over what to do.

"Do you know of this summoner?" Nooj asked him, point blank.

"Yes," Baralai answered in quiet honesty. "Meimo was one of Trema's original Seekers as well as one of his staff advisers when New Yevon was first founded. When we told Trema to step down as leader, Meimo was told to step down as well. Though we have little evidence to support it, I think he's a very crucial link to the temple raid, whether this Echo Alliance is part of it, or not. He has knowledge of the sphere vault locations. He knows how we organize our records and duty rosters. And he has the ability to move without being seen."

"And a motive for revenge," Nooj added. "We think it's why he did the sending. And we think he might come after you next."

"In retrospect, perhaps we should have done something to be certain Meimo's knowledge on the spheres remained sealed, rather than just dismissing him. But I know how it feels to be targeted for execution just because I survived something I wasn't supposed to talk about. I don't wish to follow that path."

Nooj grew quiet at his reference to the Crimson Squad incident.

Paine also seemed to be remembering the way the guns took aim at the backs of her three friends. They would have died that day, if not for her timely warning to run. "Where can we find Meimo?"

Baralai sighed heavily. "I don't know where he would be nowadays. I haven't been keeping tabs on him, though, obviously, he's been keeping tabs on us."

"Do you think he's the one who took the tools from the Machine Faction?" Rikku asked.

"Almost positive. Though we still don't know what that third symbol means, the insignia left behind associates the Youth League with the Seekers. If New Yevon and the Machine Faction get infiltrated, and it's blamed on the Youth League, attention won't be drawn to his new organization. The problem is that if he is out there forming a new faction, he could leak restricted information about the spheres to the rest of Spira." Baralai was now very worried.

Nooj frowned with suspicion. "What kind of restricted information?"

Baralai shifted his gaze to Paine and Rikku. They knew now what kind of ancient secrets the temple had been sitting on for a thousand years. But dare he tell Nooj, too? "I think I know what Meimo's trying to achieve in the end, and it's not my title as praetor." He hesitated, but then made his mind up what to do about it. "I need to call another meeting of the Zanarkand Project council. Please make sure that Lady Yuna attends."

Rikku shook her head. "I don't think she'll come. She hasn't spoken to anyone since it happened. She doesn't eat. She doesn't do anything. She just cries. And it's even worse than before because ... we really thought he was here to stay this time."

"You _must_ bring her," Baralai insisted in a soft-spoken tone of urgency. "I have a sphere that it's time for all of Spira's leaders to see."

))((

Later that day, when Rikku climbed to the loft with Paine to speak with Yuna, they found her sitting on her heels with her back to them on Tidus's futon, his blanket draped loosely over her shoulders.

Pain gave Rikku a sad sigh. "Well, at least she's moved."

Rikku exhaled and looked at the sphere in her hand. Slowly, she approached Yuna and stopped behind her. "Sunsa brought you a sphere recording of what happened in the locker room, ... if you want it. Paine and I took it to Nooj and Baralai to help gather information on the guy who did the sending because we were going to try to find him. But, Baralai's going to call a meeting with the other leaders because he thinks this guy also did the temple raid. He wants you to come."

Yuna dropped from sitting on her heels to sitting with her bare feet out to either side of her hips. She said nothing, but her chin lifted a little.

"Yunie?" Not knowing what else to say, Rikku placed the sphere next to her cousin on the futon. Then, she turned back toward Paine and both women walked away to allow Yuna the time to watch it privately.

))((

_A sphere of what happened? _A sphere of Tidus being sent …

Yuna looked down at the shell ring on her finger, then stretched a hand toward the sphere and drew it to her. Though she could barely see through her puffy, blurry eyes, she touched the activation button and watched the replay of what happened before and after she arrived on the scene.

_"Yuna, ... I'll be back! I'll find you again! I promise!"_

She felt as if her heart had broken into pieces the size of pyreflies. Clutching the sphere to her breast, she lay down on his pillow and allowed her tears to flow freely again.

))((

When Tidus woke, he found himself on a cold, stone floor - not in the swirling mist of the Farplane he expected. Eyes half-closed, he looked at his hands and tried to recall his last sensation. Yuna was trying to hold onto him to keep him from being sent, but the magic was too strong. Yet, it wasn't until he was nearly gone that he realized the sending felt different this time. He could never forget how it felt the first time, when his body shattered into sparks of light and magic, but this sending left him whole.

His eyes returned to the cold, stone floor. Curious, but puzzled, Tidus pushed himself up and took a better look at his surroundings. He was in a room that had been crushed and left to ruin over time. It looked vaguely familiar, but in a creepy sort of way. Pyreflies floated here and there, but did not cluster to form any fiends. Standing, he checked his body to see if he was, indeed, completely solid. Then, he walked to the door and put a hand to it. Locked ...

Turning around, he walked the length of the room trying to remember where he had seen it before. There were benches scattered and overturned around the perimeter. Small lockers lined the walls, though the upper row was mostly crushed from the weight of the ceiling collapsing on that side of the room. He looked to his left and saw another door. Somehow, he knew it would be there and where it would lead. He moved toward it and placed his hand against it to push it open, making it fall from its rusted hinges. Beyond the door was a long, curved concrete corridor filled with calf-deep water and stairs rising to yet another door that would open to the sphere pool's center support ring in the Zanarkand arena.

"I wouldn't try to escape that way, if I were you," a voice behind him spoke. "The entire stadium beyond this section is collapsed and lies entirely under the ocean now. It's a death trap waiting to happen - _again_. Besides the door is so corroded that you'll never get it open without blasting it somehow."

Tidus turned and blinked at the shadowed figure that was speaking to him. "It was a teleport spell, ... not a sending," he guessed.

"A teleport spell woven with illusion to make it look like a sending," the man speaking to him corrected. "A very clever combination, don't you agree?" The speaker had long, black hair which he wore loosely tied in a braided ribbon between his shoulders. His eyes, what could be seen of them from beneath his fallen bangs, were the color of storm clouds, and he carried himself with astute dignity. "We needed some way to get you out of there in a manner that wouldn't raise any questions. To the rest of Spira, you are now sent - proof that you should not have existed in their world in the first place, ... Shuyin."

Having heard that name one too many times now, Tidus choked back a low growl that emerged from his throat, but then lunged forward to grab the stranger's collar and slam him back against the wall with the crushed lockers. "I am _not_ Shuyin! Who are you and why did you bring me here?"

The man winced at the force used against him, but then only chuckled at Tidus's anger as several other men with guns showed up in the shadows surrounding them. "I shall tell you nothing if you're going to let your temper get the better of you."

Tidus gave him one more thrust into the lockers before releasing him, but still clenched his fists in impotent frustration as he reluctantly backed away.

"Much better. My name is Kyudou, and you are here because you owe me a debt." The man straightened his shirt, but stayed clear of his newly caged quadrihorn, in case he decided to strike again. "You killed some of my men in the Kilika temple's basement."

Tidus's eyes widened as he tried to recall what the Gullwings had learned so far concerning who might have been responsible for that. "Head of ... the Seekers?"

"No, no, no. The Seekers are a defunct organization. We call ourselves the Echo Alliance. We are different from the Seekers because they sought to collect as many spheres as they could to uncover the truth about Spira's past. We seek only one."

"One ..."

"It's been lost, you see - hidden, more than lost, actually. And you're going to help us find it."

Tidus's surprise and curiosity dipped back into a deep scowl. "Not if I can help it."

"You really don't have a choice. If you refuse to cooperate, we can simply send you back to the Farplane - for _real_ this time. It would be a shame to lose you because you could be such an asset to the project, but we will continue without you, if we must. You are here only because you are the perfect candidate to make our job easier. You see, I was planning a series of raids on the temples, when I saw that little interview you did in Luca. A blitzball player from Zanarkand. Why, I felt a sort of … kindredness of spirit, you could say. After all, this sunken blitzball stadium has been my home for some time now." Kyudou gave a sardonic smile and held his arms out as if displaying the wonders of a palace, rather than a collapsed locker room.

"Is that why you adopted the Abes symbol for your Echo Alliance? Because you've turned the stadium into a thieves' hideout?"

"Well, in sifting through the symbols that happen to be on display here, the Abes was the most artistic, don't you think? I thought it would add a nice touch of mystery to our calling card."

Tidus sighed with waning patience.

"More than that, though, I suppose it just represents Spira's lost past. We can only follow the echoes that have survived through time. But in our effort to find our way back to the truth, there is one ultimate echo we have yet to find." Kyudou gave him a wane smile. "When news came about that you were from Zanarkand, at first I supposed it was possible for an ordinary person to make a home under these wretched ruins. After all, that's what I've done. But the fact that you might actually be unsent was more intriguing. So, I did my homework on you." Kyudou paced lightly as if discussing some fascinating discovery to a colleague. "I guess I'm fortunate that you were the son of a famous blitzball player and gaining quite a name for yourself, as well, or it might have been difficult to find information on you among the ruins. Thanks to your semi-celebrity status, _your_ echo was quite easy to trace." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a sphere, and gave it a light toss.

Tidus caught it. He was curious, but made no move to activate it.

"I thought, 'What if this unsent young man is able to communicate with other unsent who are reluctant or unable to speak with the living?' Then, after I saw what you did to my best thieves, I decided, 'Why waste the lives of my guild members on sphere raids when I could just use you instead?'"

"You want me to help you find a sphere by talking to someone who died?"

"Something like that."

"Forget it."

"You're forgetting that you have no choice. You see, your life - or whatever you want to call your happenstance existence - will cease to continue if you don't cooperate. If you are alive now, I can kill you. Either way, I can send you. If I send you, I can make sure you never return to the real world again. No more blitzball, no more sphere hunting, ... no more Yuna."

Tidus turned away from his captor to face the lockers. The very thought of losing this imitation life that he claimed constricted him to the point where he almost couldn't breathe. If he had included his Aurochs uniform in his result plate, he could switch spheres and retrieve a weapon to defend himself with - to try to escape. But he always left his armor grid on the airship while playing blitzball. It was safer there. After a long moment, he regained his composure and looked over his shoulder with worry. "What do I have to do to get out of here?"

"Talk to Spira."

"Spira. You mean, ... the ship?"

"The spirit that lives within the ship. She exists in an unnatural state, much like yourself, resurrected from the Farplane to live as an unsent in the Via Infinito. She will not talk to anyone else that has tried, ... but she might talk to you. Speak to her and see if she will tell you where the sphere is located."

"Why is this sphere so important?"

"That you do not need to know. Just find out where it is, and we'll take care of the rest. We'll come get you when we're ready to send you to her. I suggest you rest while you can. The Via Infinito is not a nice place, and you will need to have all of your wits about you." Kyudou turned and signaled his guards to follow him back out of the room.

Tidus heard the door click back into its locked position behind them and sighed to himself with disgust. Fine mess this was. He hadn't died because he wasn't sent; but even if his friends hoped he was still alive, they had no way of knowing he was trapped here in this twisted reality of his illusionary memories. The way he remembered it, this stadium used to be full of people and excitement. But then the whole sky came crashing down on them in a tidal wave of magic when Sin … And then Auron and his stupid way of trying to … Tidus shook his head to make himself forget. He told himself none of it was real. And yet …

Lifting his gaze to the lockers that lined the wall, he felt himself drawn to one in particular. Tidus placed a hesitant hand against the locker door, then brushed away the thick layer of dust and mold to reveal an Abes symbol painted underneath. He saw the name tag at the top, but couldn't bring himself to clean it. He wanted to open the locker, but feared what he would find inside. Withdrawing his hand, he walked to the tunnel's stairs and sat down on the bottom step.

With a sigh, he turned the sphere that he held over a few times in his hands. Should he watch it? Setting it down, he rested his elbows on his knees and ran his fingers through his hair. Memories of being here when it was alive in the dream felt so thick now that they crowded his ability to think.


	19. Chapter 19: Underground Operations

Chapter 19: Underground Operations

After a long wait by himself in the cold, semi-darkness of Zanarkand's sunken stadium, Tidus gave in to the urge to look in the locker that used to belong to him, namely because he was in need of a warmer shirt. In the locker, he found what he was hoping for - some dry street clothing he kept to change into after the game. Stripping out of the Aurochs' waist vest, chaps, and sandals, he kept the dark blue pants of the uniform and pulled on a bright yellow Abes T-shirt with light blue, long sleeves. With a shudder, he rubbed his covered arms, thankful it was just enough to shake the chill. Digging further into the locker for some socks and sneakers, he marveled at how musty everything was, yet the synthetic fabrics and materials were perfectly preserved, just as he had left them. He was glad he'd decided to check his locker, … until he spotted the picture of Lenne taped inside the door.

Another chill passed over him as he shut the door with a bang and stepped back. This wasn't his locker. It was Shuyin's. Drawing a breath to calm his unease, Tidus sat down on the floor to put on the socks and shoes. But were they his shoes? They couldn't have been his shoes. But he had some just like them in the dream. If he had come from Shuyin, then he supposed they were his shoes. They certainly fit well enough. Tidus looked down at his Abes shirt and clutched it lightly, debating whether to rip it back off or not.

The door to the locker room opened again, interrupting his small panic, and Kyudou and his body guards entered. "Oh, good. I see you've found your things. It is rather chilly at this depth and without any sunlight. Thank goodness for pyreflies and torches to give us light, hm? Are you ready?"

Tidus tied his laces and stood.

"First, the ground rules. At this stage it's more cost-effective to keep you alive than to let you go to waste. So, when you are ready for us to bring you back, use this. We can use it to communicate in case you find yourself in over your head with fiends." He gave Tidus a small com sphere that hooked onto the neck of his shirt. " The Via Infinito contains some of the most powerful fiends you'll ever see. Don't go in there feeling cocky. This isn't a game. If you lose, you won't get another shot at the title. Oh, and don't try to escape. There is only one exit, and it will be far from where we are sending you. Once you fall down a level in this dungeon, there is no way back up, without outside help. We can't tell you what level Spira will be on, but she will eventually come to yours, if you can survive the wait. All you have to do is ask her where the sphere is, and then let us know when you're ready to come back. Understood?"

"Understood." Tidus frowned at him as he activated the com sphere. "Can I at least have some kind of weapon? I left mine at home today since I _thought_ I'd be playing blitzball."

"What kind of simpletons do you take us for? If we give you a weapon, you might turn on us."

"Then what am I supposed to do if I run into a fiend?"

"I suggest you run. Very quickly."

"And what if the Via Infinito pulls me apart like the Farplane did?"

Kyudou gave an exasperated sigh at Tidus's questions. "Meimo, I believe that's your department to answer."

The summoner that had sent Tidus to this location stepped from within the cluster of bodyguards. "The Via Infinito is a darker version of the Farplane, but as an unsent, you have taken on a complicated physical existence."

Tidus gave the man a bitter glare as he approached. "I'm not unsent."

Meimo chuckled. "Then why worry what the spirit planes might do to you?"

"I'm …" It was still hard to admit it. "I'm a different kind of … person."

"If you're human, you have nothing to worry about. If you're a spirit that has taken on a physical shell, the spirit plane will not _immediately_ disrupt the magic holding you together, but the longer you stay, the harder it will pull. And eventually it _will_ win. I suggest you keep your mind to the matter and get the job done quickly, if you wish to return." Meimo gave a curt, thin smile, then lifted his hands to begin weaving his teleportation magic around Tidus.

This time, Tidus knew it wasn't a summoning spell, but the thinning and fading of his body was upsetting to watch all the same. When he arrived in the Via Infinito, the first thing he did was check his chest and limbs to be sure he was completely there. But how much time did he have before he wouldn't be? He was tempted to look for an escape in spite of their warnings. He knew the Machine Faction was working in the area, if he could just get their attention.

Much like the sunken Abes locker room, the sterile halls of the dark labyrinth glowed only with the eerie light of pyreflies, but in more abundance. That meant, though he appeared to be alone, he was being watched by the spirits who had claimed this terrible residence as home. "Spira?" He hoped the spirit would come to him, rather than him having to hunt for her.

When there was no response, he went into the tunnel ahead of him, staying to his right to avoid getting lost. After going for some indiscernible distance, he spotted a fiend and quickly turned the corner to hide. Time was ticking, though. He couldn't afford to wait. Choosing a different path, he crept quietly along the labyrinth wall and hoped the fiend wouldn't follow.

Eventually, he came across Brother's remote S-watcher that fell down the hole. Stooping to pick it up, he gave it a shake, but had no idea how to fix it. "Brother? Shinra?" he whispered and gave the machine another shake. "Gippal?"

"Are you wasting time?" the voice in the com sphere spoke.

"Shut up," Tidus hissed and tapped the button to turn off his com sphere. Continuing down the vacant corridor, still clutching the broken S-watcher, he hoped someone from the Faction would find him.

After walking in circles and hiding from frequent fiendish apparitions for what seemed like an eternity, he was startled by the sudden appearance of a woman falling through the hole from the high ceiling above. She hit the floor hard, groaned in pain, and struggled to stand. Then, she ran to the wall, digging at it with her nails, trying to find a way out. She went through the same routine he had watched her endure on the monitors, but before he could think of what to say to her, she ran around the corner and out of sight.

"Spira! Wait! I need to talk to you!" He ran after her, but as he rounded the corner, she collided with a humbaba and evaporated in a flurry of pyreflies. She was beginning her cycle of falling somewhere else now. The humbaba, however, remained.

The greater species of the horned behemoth, with its stark white mane and fiery breath, fixed its hungered gaze on him and bounded forward. Cursing under his breath, Tidus turned and ran as fast as he could to get away from the beast, since he had no way of fighting it. But for every four strides he took, the humbaba covered the same amount of space in one.

Tidus tapped his com link back on. "Get me out!" He ran through the maze with no idea where he was going, until he came to an area where the floor was littered with shattered glass - no doubt some of Trema's broken spheres. Then, he looked at the S-watcher in his hand, and dropped it for a kick. The punted little machina hit the humbaba's eye with an accuracy and strength that would have made Wakka and his blitzball proud, but then it dropped to the floor, useless to help him any further. As the humbaba shook its head and blinked its injured eye, Tidus raced down another corridor looking for an exit. But when he rounded another corner, he found himself facing an elder drake. The large, red reptile filled the entire width of the corridor, and flames extended beyond the length of its horns with each breath.

"Meimo! Get me out of here now!'" he yelled again to the com link.

))((

Still wrapped in Tidus's blanket, Yuna woke from a fitful sleep and made herself go downstairs in search of food to satisfy the awful hunger gnawing at her stomach. But when she reached the bar and sat down on a stool, she lay her head on the cool wood surface and tried to think of anything that would appeal to her. It was a nameless hunger.

"Mish Yoona." The hypello came to her and blinked over her with his large frog-like face. "Do yoo finally feel like eatingu?"

"I don't think so, Barkeep," she mumbled.

"Itsh not sho good for yoo to go wishout foods for sho long."

"I'm just not hungry," she listlessly answered, feeling numb to the core.

The hypello drooped in sympathy as his large, blue hand gently patted her head. "If yoo change yoor mind, yoo let me know." Barkeep looked over his shoulder at the other hypello standing in the kitchen, but she only shook her head in sympathy, too.

Yuna closed her burning, red eyes and tried to imagine this had not happened. In her mind, she could still see Tidus's smile and feel his warmth. She could hear his voice and laughter. Fresh tears trickled down her nose to _plink_ and puddle on the counter beneath her cheek.

Seated at the table behind her, Brother and Shinra were working on the final wiring and programming adjustments of a new watcher, when the monitor from the broken one suddenly came to life. As it buzzed with static, they looked at the strange occurrence with curiosity.

_"Brother? Shinra? ... Gippal?"_ someone shouted over the unstable frequency.

Yuna's eyes opened. Had she imagined it?

Brother grabbed the screen and began making the adjustments to receive a better image. "Who is finding our watcher? That sounds like -"

_"Shut up,"_ the voice groused.

"What? Don't you tell me to shut up. I am the captain." Brother scowled and slammed a fist on the table.

"Tidus!" Yuna swerved out of her seat and ran to the screen. She stared desperately into the static, but nothing was visible through it.

_"Spira! Wait! I need to talk to you!"_

"It's Tidus! That's his voice!" Yuna grabbed the screen from Brother and smacked it with her hand, still trying to get rid of the static.

"Yuna, what are you doing? You're going to break it!" Brother grabbed it away from her.

_"Get me out!"_ The image on the screen cleared a bit to show a blur of blank walls. He was holding the watcher, running, pausing, and looking down at the broken glass under his feet. The S-watcher turned toward his face for a moment, revealing his panic, then it was dropped and caught by his shoe. The S-watcher slammed into a humbaba's face, and then the connection died.

"That was him! I know it was!" Yuna spun on Shinra and caught him by his coveralls to jerk him up on his toes, eye-level with her. "Get it back on-line! _Now_!" But when the boy only blinked at her like she had lost her mind, Yuna realized how frantic she had become and dropped him back into his seat. Tears returned as she pulled Tidus's blanket closer around her shoulders. "That was him. It had to be. But why is he in the Via Infinito instead of the Farplane?"

"I'll contact the Machine Faction in Bevelle." Shinra climbed down from his seat. "If Tidus is in there, they'll find a way to extract him."

She nodded and sniffled. "I'm sorry. I just ... I ... Can I ... watch? Just in case he comes back?" Yuna asked Brother.

"Yes, but no hitting screen! Bad, Yuna!" He shook a finger at her.

"I won't hit the screen," she promised and settled at the table beside him. Staring intensely at the screen, she tried willing it back to life. _Tidus, what's happening to you?_

))((

One minute, Tidus found himself sandwiched between a furious humbaba and an advancing elder drake; in the next, he was sitting his backside on the floor of the Abes locker room in front of Meimo and Kyudou again. "What took you so long?" he blasted them.

"_Don't _turn off your communicator, or next time we will _leave_ your ass right where it gets stomped!" Meimo gave him a thin-lipped frown.

"Send him back," Kyudou impatiently ordered. "He needs to try again."

Tidus couldn't believe what he was hearing. "What? She ran away from me, man! She doesn't want to talk!"

"Send him back!" Kyudou commanded.

Meimo cast his teleportation spell once more, sending Tidus back into the Via Infinito, this time to a different place, but once again right near an opening from the ceiling above.

Growling in frustration, Tidus rose and went to stand under the opening. This time when she dropped through, he was ready, … and he caught her in his arms. "Spira -"

She screamed and scratched at him to free herself, then she ran again.

"Spira, wait! I'm trapped between life and death just like you!"

The woman slowed to a stop and reluctantly turned to face him.

"The Fayth summoned me from a dream." Tidus winced and laid a hand to the cheek she scratched, as he tried to still his racing heart. "I'm … not real."

"You are not here to send me?"

Tidus shook his head. "I'm looking for your sphere. Can you tell me where it is?"

"Which one?"

"The ... one you hid?" he guessed, playing off the fact that he knew nothing about it.

The woman's expression darkened. "Why do you want it?"

He sighed with defeat and opted for the truth. "Because if I don't find it, a summoner has threatened to send me. And if I get sent, … I'll lose everything."

Broken and bleeding from the unhealed mortal wounds that had taken her life, she moved toward him and reached a cautious, gray hand to his arm, chest, ... face, as if trying to see for herself whether he was living or dead.

Her touch disturbed Tidus, for it was cold - cold like death. If he was from a dream, Spira was from a nightmare.

"That sphere is a key that could unlock all the worlds I've seen, including the planet of our origin. But we cannot go back to where we came from - not ever. The Founders seek to destroy us. They fear what we have done. Our abyssal shame bears witness to our deeds, yet hides it from them." Her black eyes gazed deep into his soul. "No one else must find those maps, because there are those who hunger only for the power it could give them."

Astonished as he was to hear what the sphere contained, Tidus couldn't help but think of Yuna. "What if someone wanted it, just to learn about where we came from - no power grab."

"That heart would be rare, and the trip would still be dangerous." She pulled away as her body began to shine with shimmering lights. "Please, don't let anyone else have it. Protect it. Leave it be," she pleaded with him, shedding a tear.

"Wait." He reached out for her, but then found himself back in the locker room once more, facing a very angry-looking Meimo and Kyudou. "She said no," he reported.

"We heard." Kyudou took the com sphere back from Tidus. "Looks like we will have to resort to Plan B."

Meimo nodded in agreement and wove another teleportation spell. This time, Tidus found himself standing in the ruins of what used to be a small bedroom - _his_ houseboat bedroom.

))((

"Any word yet?" Paine asked as she came onto the bridge.

Yuna shook her head and paced behind Shinra's chair. She had been alternating her attention between the monitor in the cabin and checking with Shinra to see if he heard anything back from Bevelle yet.

The com sphere light blinked and chirped indicating an incoming message. Gippal's face appeared on the screen, but he looked weary. "Well, we've got some good news and some bad news."

Yuna braced herself. "Bad news?"

"We sent down another S-watcher to scout for him and went through as many levels as we could, but couldn't turn up anything."

Disappointed, Yuna tried to hold her nerves together. "And the good news?"

"Mostly the same as the bad news, but considering the location, that's good news. However, we did find the other S-watcher, and it looks pretty busted up. Shinra said it looked like he kicked it into a humbaba, and I'd say that sounds about right for the kind of damage it took."

"Then, ... he _was_ there?"

"Possibly came and went." Gippal hated to get her hopes up. "Want us to do another search?"

"If it's not too much trouble."

"How's the other work progressing there?" Buddy asked as he drew near.

Gippal sighed with disgust. "We have scoured this place upside down and inside out, and we still can't find anything that even remotely looks like an AI panel. All those cables lead to a dead end. We've reduced Vegnagun to scrap metal and tried to cut into the top layer of the uppermost cable lead, but its impenetrable. We found one thin crack in it, but even that's covered by some kind of force shield."

"Can't you drop the shield?"

"How? That would be part of the AI's defense, and we can't find the AI." Gippal was frustrated. "We can't make the repairs to the other parts of the ship without knowing if we're cutting into vital systems."

"Have you seen anything of Spira?" Yuna asked in curiosity.

"Spira? You mean the ghost-chick? Yeah, we ran into her a few times, but her routine doesn't change."

"But, ... no sign of Tidus? He called out her name when we heard him."

"I'm sorry, Yuna, but we haven't seen anything of him."

She sighed with disappointment. "Thank you, Gippal."


	20. Chapter 20: Spira's Sphere

Chapter 20: Spira's Sphere

The next morning, Yuna entered the council meeting and walked straight to Kimahri's side, offering Seymour's sphere to him. "We found it in Baaj." She placed the large, but fragile crystal ball into the ronso's strong hands. "Tidus said it didn't have the library in it, but it has real-sized details of the way Zanarkand used to look."

Kimahri looked down at the gift he had just been entrusted with, but his golden eyes reflected his sympathy for the human girl he had nearly raised as his own daughter. "Kimahri take good care of sphere. Put sphere to good use for Tidus. If Kimahri can help do anything for Yuna, please say so."

Yuna nodded, but she didn't trust herself to say anything more without breaking down again. Taking her seat at the table, she buried her head into her arms, clearly not wanting to be there.

"Lady Yuna," Tromell spoke in a sympathetic tone. "We're very sorry to hear about what happened in Luca with your young man. It's a true tragedy since he wasn't even unsent. So difficult to change popular opinion once it solidifies, whether it's based on truth or lies. Perhaps the Fayth can summon him back once more."

"And we'll keep searching the Via Infinito," Gippal promised. "If you saw him in there once, then he may show up again, you know? Even the Noojster's trying to help us find him." When she didn't respond, he dipped a sharp brow toward the more stern, quiet man. "Say something to her," he silently mouthed.

Nooj frowned at Gippal's attempt to make it look like he was concerned for Tidus, but he did feel badly for Yuna. "We're hunting down the summoner who did the sending because we believe him to be part of a larger organization that is also responsible for the raid on the temples. That's why we're here today. Baralai knows him. But if you'd rather not be here, you can go back home, and we'll fill you in later." He pushed his glasses up on his nose and looked up as Baralai entered the room, escorted by guards.

"It really would be in everyone's best interest if she stayed." Baralai set a small, locked chest on the table and gestured for the guards who brought in two more like it to do the same. Then, he dismissed the guards and locked the door behind them.

))((

Drawing an uneasy breath, Baralai looked at the faces around the table in the conference room. If showing the spheres was a mistake, then the fault would be entirely on his shoulders. His gaze went to Yuna in particular. Though everyone had offered their sympathies about Tidus's sending, their words only seemed to be making her feel worse.

He moved next to her seat and crouched eye level to the table to see her profile and speak quietly. "Lady Yuna, I'm very sorry to hear what happened, ... but I wouldn't ask you to be here, if this wasn't important. I know you may not want to give it your attention right now, but considering how this may tie in with Tidus's sending, you really need to see what I'm about to share."

Yuna lifted her sad gaze to meet his warm brown eyes. He really did seem sincere about it, so she sighed and set her chin on her hands to pay attention.

Baralai rose and placed a supportive hand on her shoulder before returning to the head of the table to address everyone. "The unfortunate incident that happened in Luca will only repeat itself on a much larger scale if word of what you are about to see leaks to people who would use it for personal or political gain. I will not forbid you to share it with your most trusted advisers, but I caution you to use wisdom regarding those who you trust. It is a former adviser that we believe has caused all this trouble."

Lifting a pendant from beneath his shirt, he slipped it into the lock of the first small chest and turned it to dispel the magical glyphs that sealed the chest from the inside. Then, he opened it and produced a very ornate, very old sphere. "These are the only spheres left from what was once a highly prized collection. The rest were destroyed by Trema or suffered physical damage over time. These three remain only because we got to them before he did."

He set it in the middle of the table. "These spheres are so old, that they don't contain any magical water from Macalania. They rely only on ancient machina technology. The images are not even in the sphere itself. They are on disks that rest inside the sphere." He demonstrated by removing the silver, palm-sized disk from the bottom of the ornate sphere. Then, he slid it back into position and touched the activation button. The sphere lit with a rose color, then produced a holographic cube just above it to display the images on all sides for everyone to see.

_"Captain Spira, my name is Maedra." A guado with silver hair and light brown skin presented himself to a woman in a crisp blue and green uniform. "I heard your distress signal, and my scanners have shown me that your life support systems are failing. I would gladly offer my services to you as a summoner to correct this problem, if you wish."_

_"Summoner?" The woman tilted her chin with suspicion. Her smooth, tight bun of jet black hair was drawn back from her face, accentuating the sharpness of her jet black eyes. "And what exactly is a summoner, my Lord Maedra?"_

_"Why, a person who summons magical spirits into reality, of course." The guado smiled pleasantly._

_"Magic ... Well, why didn't I think of that before? I should fire my engineers for not considering it." Her voice dripped with sarcasm, showing her tension. "How dare you waste my time with games, when I have a life-threatening situation on board. People are dying out there, and you come to me with good luck charms?"_

_"Please, ... Captain Spira." The guado strode forward and spoke calmly. "You do not understand. We can make what is not real become real, in a manner similar to the way that your engineers were able to design and build this ship starting with nothing but an idea. I can give your ship a life support system by drawing atmospheric conditions out of another dimension."_

_"I don't believe I'm even listening to this." The woman started to walk away, then stopped and turned back to him. "Go back to your ship and go back to wherever you came from, Maedra. I thank you for your concern, but right now your presence here looks more like sabotage than coincidence, and I'm apt to change my mind very quickly about being diplomatic if you don't stay clear." She leveled a piercing gaze on him._

_"Will you allow me to demonstrate? If you disapprove, then I will not waste any more of your time. Please, from what I have seen of your ship, it is magnificent. I want to help you. Let me help, Captain Spira. The universe can be a big, lonely place without friends."_

_"My planet has been attacked twice by an alien race who said they just wanted to be friends. What makes you any different? How do I know I can trust you?" she looked over her shoulder at the guado._

_"Well, that's the funny thing about trust." He smiled. "You can't do it unless you're willing to let go of your doubts."_

_Spira weighed the critical situation of her ship against the possible outcome of this offer. "I don't have the command center's approval, but I will trust you, for now, because I have no other options." She approached him once more. " However, if you harm this ship, or my people, ... so help me I will make sure that you die with us."_

_"Please, show me to your failed system, and I will see what I can do to help you protect the ones you love. Oh, and forgive me for staring, but I must say, I find your race remarkably beautiful."_

_The captain stepped back in surprise, as if she didn't know whether to be flattered or insulted. But she quickly regained her authoritative composure, and turned to lead the way. Aside from the guado, she spoke to the cameraman. "Bring that digital recorder. I want everything he does hard-copied in case something goes wrong. If it looks like we won't survive, transmit this to Earth as soon as possible to give them fair warning they may be under attack from a new alien threat."_

The sphere clicked off.

Baralai checked the expressions of the faces around the table. He had everyone's attention now, including Yuna's. "Maedra fixed the life support system and thus introduced magic to Spira's machina ship. We think he is the one who installed the Farplane and the Via Infinito into the ship's core. We know that he stayed on Spira to manually maintain the spirit plane portals."

"Did you see that room she was in? Where is that room?" Gippal tapped his pen on the table. His frustration with scouring the Farplane's Heart was beginning to show. "It looked like the bridge to the ship, and the bridge is probably where the AI is located."

"Right now finding Meimo is more important than finding some forgotten room." Nooj stretched his mechanical leg beneath the table.

"Oh yeah? Maybe Meimo's hiding in it. Ever thought of that?" Gippal grouchily slumped in his seat.

"Maedra is considered by the guado to be the founding father of our race, here on Spira," Tromell offered to the table discussion. "He is the one credited with building Guadosalam, and we believe he is the source of the Farplane's existence. However, we knew nothing of the Via Infinito, ... or Spira, for that matter. After establishing Guadosalam, he disappeared."

"The Via Infinito works the same way that the Farplane does, ... but in reverse," Baralai explained as he locked the sphere back into its chest and unlocked the second like the first. "None who enter there may rest. It balances the magic of the Farplane somehow, but Maedra's secrets on exactly how that works disappeared with him. Maedra is also credited with teaching Spira how to become the first _human_ summoner. But, in spite of the colony's success, the Founders disapproved of the alien power used to sustain it. They ordered Spira to expel all the guado that Maedra brought to the ship and told her to come home at once. She refused, and ... that caused problems." Baralai touched the activation button on the second sphere as he set it on the table, and a new holographic cube appeared.

_"No! NO! Give me back my baby! Give her back!" The same black-haired woman from the previous sphere was being restrained by uniformed guards. This time, however, she was in a long, white gown. Her hair was loose and wild, and tears streaked her face. When she finally quieted, it was only to catch her breath between sobs._

_"That's not a baby; it's a monster!" The man speaking had salt and pepper hair, a stern countenance, and the same jet black eyes as the captain. "Have you taken a good look at it? Open your eyes! It looks like a demon!"_

_"How can you say that? Arantisu is your granddaughter!"_

_"She's a shame and disgrace. She isn't even human!" The face of the man yelling turned several deepening shades of red as his volume rose. "This is an outrage, Spira! You have defied every order that the Founders set down for you. First you allow those aliens to board your ship. Then you have them practice their hocus-pocus on it. You've got dead people walking around in some unnatural state of existence. You've even brought demons on board! We trusted you to hold this position with dignity, or I never would have recommended you for it. Now, you've ruined my reputation, your own reputation, and you have endangered all of Earth! If you say you can get rid of the walking dead and demons by sending them away, then I suggest you do it immediately, or we're going to have to destroy the whole ship just to make sure nothing like this finds its way back to Earth!"_

_"No! You can't do that! Life is finally beginning to thrive here! It's a success! That's what you wanted, wasn't it? The colony ship is a success!" she vehemently argued._

_The man ignored her and turned to leaf through a folder in his hand. "Since you seem to have lost your mental capacity to hold things together out here, I have come to relieve you of your duties, Captain. The entire command center at the Colony Foundation is up in arms about this, so you'd better be grateful I even came to help clean up your mess." He slammed the large folder down on a nearby desk and then spoke to one of his guards. "Take her to her room. Pack up her things. And escort her to the first pod out of here back to the space station. Here, take this with you and turn it in to the command center representative at the station to deliver back to Earth." He passed a sphere to one of his attendants. "It's her log of the ship's journey so far, so we can pinpoint where she's been picking up all these alien life forms. We'll be taking the ship back to Earth and holding it in the dry dock's retractor beams for observation to see if there's any way to destroy the biosystems without destroying the hull. If it looks hopeless, then our orders are to terminate it."_

_"What about the guado and the baby, Sir?" one of his second-hand men asked._

_The man now in command looked troubled. "Continue with orders to expel all guado from this ship, but bring Maedra to me. Offer to drop his spawn into that demon plane and see if that changes his mind about removing it from the ship. If he refuses to cooperate, ... execute both of them. We can't have the baby grow to full potential like the father."_

_"No! NO!" The black haired woman screamed and lifted her hands in a frantic, magical command. A summoning rod appeared in her hands, and she immediately called out another magical command, summoning a circle of glyphs at her feet. A mantis-looking aeon rose before her and immediately lashed out at her captors in her defense._

_Spira's father turned, aghast at what his daughter had been able to do, and drew a gun to fire at the monster she had summoned. Spira gritted her teeth and jumped in front of the fire to protect the aeon, as she threw her spear-headed staff. The blast hit her in the shoulder, but her staff charged with a thunder spell as it left her hand._

_"Spira ... what have you done, child? Now, they will not let you live," he moaned as he looked down at the staff that had skewered him completely through, still crackling with electrical magic._

_The woman gasped between her sobs and turned to see that her aeon had already killed the two guards. Then, she looked at the camera man who was still recording. As he backed cautiously away, she snatched her travel log from one of the guard's hands and ran for the door. "Maedra! Maedra! They took Arantisu!" she screamed down the hall as she ran._

The sphere clicked off.

Baralai waited a moment to observe the faces around the table once more. "Spira was tried for the three murders as well as treason. She was punished by being thrown into the Via Infinito with her baby."

Yuna was shocked at the tragedy. "Baby? But we didn't see any baby with her when we saw her haunting the halls."

"Well, that's because, somehow, Maedra got them out. The only other record we still have of what happened next is this one." He replaced the second sphere with the third one. The holographic cube lit again, but this time, it was not Spira's face being shown. It was Maedra's.

_Maedra was in the glen of the Farplane, and he was carefully setting up the camera to record what he was about to do. Then, he backed away with a sad expression to lift a small, wrapped bundle in his hands. "Arantisu," he spoke to the bundle. "I could not protect you and your mother. It will forever be my curse to live without you." Emotion overcame his words, so he gave up trying to speak and cradled the bundle to his chest. Then, he began to dance. It was a soft, sad dance - one that brought tears to his eyes and evoked sobs from his chest. Maedra set the tiny bundle on the bed of purple and blue flowers in the Farplane and raised his summoning rod. A magical circle surrounded the bundle, and arcane glyphs began to write themselves over and around it. The glyphs hardened and solidified into a stone seal and then sank into the flower bed out of sight. A brilliant light rose from the tomb and floated around him before bursting into sparkles of light. He reached to touch them, but they slipped through his fingers, surrounding him, ... embracing him. The guado dropped to his knees for a moment to allow himself to grieve as they dispersed. Turning to look over his shoulder toward the source of more feminine sounding tears, he held out a hand. "Spira ... Spira come to me once more. It is time." _

_Spira crawled to where the seal had been and laid her cheek on the ground among the flowers. Her own body was too exhausted and torn to do more than shed silent tears._

_Maedra gently drew her attention back to him, supporting her in her weakened condition. "Are you sure you want to return?" he asked._

_"I won't be in that place," she answered in a parched, raspy voice. "I will be everywhere, and I will be able to protect them both this time. We must do this for them. If anything happens to you, it will die. On my world, Maedra, it is the duty of the captain to go down with her ship if it means saving the crew."_

_"As you wish." He kissed her forehead and whispered something into her ear. Then, he forced himself to stand and continue with his last task. Stepping back away from her, he raised his summoning staff and began one final dance to weave his magic. This time, the glyphs formed all around him, lining the walls and the ceiling of the ship's dome. Raw elemental magic burst from his calling and surrounded Spira's form, penetrating her, until she was a blinding form of light and color. He continued to dance, and the light and color levitated above him going through several stages of change._

_The light flashed so bright that, for a moment, everything went white. Then, as the sphere came back into focus, the walls of the ship glowed with new sparkle. Maedra fell limp to the ground, his effort drained him so. After a long moment, his spirit rose from his body to disperse into the Farplane, leaving his body empty and alone._

Baralai turned the sphere off.

"He was ... creating aeons." Yuna broke the silence with mild awe. "Summoning aeons is one thing, but to _create_ them is quite another." She'd never seen anything like it before. "For them to be aeons, though, that means both of them were still alive when they were entombed."

"Yes," Baralai confirmed. "But apparently both of them were near death, and Spira chose to do this to protect the ship and her baby rather than heal and try to escape. The most powerful aeon on Spira, is Spira herself."

The praetor sat down at the head of the table and checked everyone's expressions once more. Did they get it? Did they truly understand what they had just witnessed? "Her tomb is the entire ship, but her spirit is accessible only through the Via Infinito. Her preserved life force embodies the ship, and she has sustained it all this time. We cannot let anyone harm her, or we will all pay the price."

"So, ... that is why Maedra disappeared," Tromell spoke his thoughts aloud, pondering the newly solved mystery surrounding the guado legend. "He seems to have known that dance would be his last."

"The creation of two aeons was so powerful that it killed him." Yuna reflected upon what her own fate might have been, had she accepted Lady Yunalesca's final summoning. "What of the baby? If it was turned into an aeon, has anyone ever tried to summon it?"

"Not that I know of - or at least, not with luck. The seal is too strong and is very different from those created by Yevon in making the Fayth. And, as for the ship, it wasn't taken back to Earth because ... the operations center disappeared." Baralai looked to Gippal.

The engineer snorted and scratched the base of his eye patch. "_Now_ you tell me." Gippal shook his head. "You are one sick bastard sitting on all those secrets of yours watching everyone else sweat."

Baralai allowed himself a small smile at his friend's attempt to find humor in their moment of distress. "Without being able to find the bridge, the Founders could not bring the ship home. They continued to lord over it from afar, but they were still resentful of the use of magic. And we all know what that eventually led to with Zanarkand's rise to power. Spira, I think, stayed in her orbit wherever she was stopped, until Yu Yevon persuaded her to flee. But that cannot be confirmed."

"This is the big secret that Yevon hid all this time? _This_ is what Trema tried to destroy?" Nooj complained. "It's shocking and shameful, but it wasn't worth hiding for a thousand years."

"Then you missed the main thing that matters." Baralai frowned slightly. "Spira kept a travel log. Did you see it? It was a sphere that held the locations of all the worlds of all the life forms that have made this ship home - not just planet Earth, but the home planets of the guado, ronso and everything else. Before she was transformed, Spira hid the sphere containing her travel log, and no one has seen it since. The Yevon maesters began hoarding spheres because they didn't want anyone else to get that information and look for ways to return to Earth, or any other planet. Trema said he believed there were tracers embedded in one or more of the spheres, so he began destroying as many as he could get his hands on. We never found evidence to support his paranoia, but we suspect his reason for going down into the Via Infinito was to ask Spira directly about it. That's the last we saw of him. We're not sure if she took him down herself, or if one of the other fiends did it. But if that travel log falls into the hands of someone like Meimo, all of Spira will be captive to a new kind of mutiny."

Nooj sighed heavily now that he understood Baralai's concern. "If Meimo gets the map and finds a tracer or the hidden bridge, he could take Spira wherever he wants, endangering us or other worlds. But to stop him, ... we have to find him." He gave it some thought. "Leblanc said she met him in Zanarkand during the tourist trade production. He was in Luca for the games, but he chose the temple in Kilika for his raid. He seems to be as all over the place as the rest of us, but he's got to have a central base somewhere."

"Kilika was the storage vault for the third sphere in this set. After what happened with Trema, we decided to split them into different locations. If he wasn't after all of the spheres, then he was at least after this one." Baralai lifted the ancient sphere and placed it back in its chest, using his pendant once more to lock the magical trap within.

Yuna gasped and stood so abruptly that she knocked over her chair. "Meimo didn't send Tidus to the Farplane! Don't you see? Somehow he teleported him to the Via Infinito to talk to Spira about the sphere. That's why he was calling her name." She paused recalling the three symbols on the insignia she was told about - the third symbol that only Tidus seemed to recognize and wanted to keep secret. "I think I know where Meimo might be hiding!"


	21. Chapter 21: Sunken Treasure

Chapter 21: Sunken Treasure

The Celsius hovered low near the Zanarkand ruins to allow its passengers to hop off the ramp onto solid ground. The Gullwings, Nooj, and some of his Youth League volunteers wound their way through the broken streets leading to the large ruins where their point of contact stood waiting for them. (1)

"Oi! Isaaru!" Rikku waved.

"Good to see you again." The summoner who had declared himself soul guardian of the Zanarkand temple gave a formal bow. "I got your com sphere message, but I'm not so certain I can help. I haven't seen anyone else here but me, ... unless you want to count several hundred monkeys."

Yuna, proudly wearing her gunner outfit once again, reached into her pocket and pulled out Tidus's necklace and earring to hold in her palm before him. "Do you know of any place in the ruins that bears this symbol? It was the symbol for a Zanarkand blitzball team - the Abes."

Isaaru picked up the silver necklace and examined the symbol carefully. "Well, the only logical place to find a blitzball team would be a blitzball stadium. But if there was one here, it's probably completely under water now." He gave her a pinched expression in apology. "Most of the city actually lies at the bottom of the ocean because a large portion of it was built on the water. These ruins that we see only scratch the surface. You can see now why I say that I highly doubt there are any thief guilds hiding out here. They'd have to be blitzball players themselves to withstand living on the bottom of the ocean for very long."

Paine looked to Yuna. "Unless there are pockets of air trapped in the interiors of the ruins, like at Baaj."

Nooj agreed. "And if you have the aid of teleportation magic you brave the waters only once before coming and going is a breeze. We need a way to search under the water."

Isaaru folded his hands over his arms inside his voluminous blue sleeves. "You're talking about a major undertaking if you're wanting to search the ruins below the surface. This city was very big."

Paine looked over the summoner's shoulder to the waterfront. There was no telling how extensive the ruins were beneath the surface, just by looking at them from here. "We'll just have to start in one corner near the shore and work our way across it like a grid."

"Or, we can ask someone else for help narrowing down the possibilities," Yuna suggested. "Wait right here." She ran back down the broken road out of the ruins to the ramp of the Celsius and hurried to the bridge. "Shinra! Brother! Do you still have that S-watcher you've been working on? Can it explore under water?"

"It can be made for water exploration with some minor adjustments," Shinra answered.

"Is there any way to narrow down which area under water the stadium would be in?" Yuna asked with growing excitement.

"Buddy can take a sonic picture of the ocean floor to make a map," Shinra suggested.

"We'll get right on it!" Brother saluted Yuna, then climbed into his seat and closed up the ship for flight.

As the Celsius lifted from the ground to pass over the entire Zanarkand area, Buddy slid into his seat at the controls. He sent out a sonic scan of the area as they slowly combed over it, and when the data reverberated back to him, he punched up the map of the ocean floor for everyone to see on his monitor. "Wow. This was one heck of a big city. But a stadium would have to be one of the largest buildings to collapse. This area looks like it had a really big, single structure. Or you could try this one." He selected the two most likely choices. "Shinra, do a print out so she can guide the S-watcher on a more direct path."

The boy hopped off of his chair to hit the print button for the display, and then he ran to the lift to get the scouting device.

Brother returned the airship to its resting place near the shore and reopened the hatch. "Let us know if you need anything else - anything at all!" He was glad to see her energetic again.

Yuna grabbed her map printout and eagerly studied it, trying to decide which area to explore first. "This one seems to have rounded walls. See?" She showed it to Buddy. "Think that could have been part of a sphere pool?"

After a few minutes, Shinra returned with the new S-watcher and passed it to Yuna. "It's not entirely water-tight, but it should do for this."

"Thank you so much!" Yuna accepted the watcher and tucked the maps under an arm. Then, she raised the boy's face mask to give his small cheek a big kiss.

"Hey! I did the flying! Where's my kiss?" Brother complained.

Yuna planted a quick kiss on Brother's cheek, and then surprised Buddy by giving him one too, before grinning and running back to the lift with her new tools for finding Tidus.

Shinra turned beet red and placed a hand over the cheek. "Hm. Not as gross as I thought."

))((

The water lapped lazily against the sides of the Celsius as it bobbed and floated on the ocean's surface. A gentle breeze lifted through the open hatch where Yuna sat on the top of the ramp, gripping the S-watcher's monitor in her lap. Rikku operated the controls beside her, while Nooj and Paine hung over their shoulders studying the eerie images of the ruins at the bottom of the ocean floor as the spying device swam through them. Nooj consulted one of the sonic maps. "Okay, there should be an opening to the left where it looks like a big archway collapsed. There ... between those big blueish circles."

Rikku turned the controls so that the little rover could scan the entire front of the structure. "Looks like there's an interior closure beyond it. See those smaller arches?" she noted. "Oh! There, look!" She stopped and pointed to a sign on the wall displayed on the screen. "The Abes vs. the Duggles! We found it! That must have been the game Tidus was playing the night that it sank, right?"

Yuna became excited at the discovery in spite of the fact that she told herself not to. "See if you can go in further."

"Look for an air pocket somewhere inside," Nooj advised.

Rikku hit the controls again and the little watcher swam through the entrance into the main lobby. The search took some time because the arena was so large, but eventually the watcher hummed and whirred out of the water into flight. It found a corridor of trapped air up the stairs to the announcer's box and offices, then the watcher headed toward the locker rooms.

"Wait!" Nooj caught Rikku's hand and pulled the controls away before she could go any further. He stopped the watcher and lowered it to the side. There were people moving around and talking to each other at the far end of the torch-lit hallway. "I think we just found our den of thieves." Nooj turned to his Youth League members who had been sitting in the engine room behind them. "Suit up and get your air tanks. It's time for a swim."

Rikku watched as Nooj grabbed his gear as well. "Are you going, too?"

"You think I'd come all the way out here just to sit on the sidelines?" Nooj folded his cane into a small rod and tucked it behind the protective armor that he wore above his machina leg. Then, he did the same with his thin, wire glasses.

"But ..." Rikku looked at his machina limbs with doubt.

"You forget you're talking about Nooj the Undying." Pain switched her sphere grid to her thief attire for the quick swim. "If someone points a finger of blame at him, he'll break it off." She smirked at Nooj and grabbed an air tank, ... just in case.

One-by-one the Gullwings and Youth League members dropped into the dark, ill-fated waters of the City of the Dead. The water was frigid and even darker beneath the surface than above it. The party swam following the watcher's path to the stadium and through the washed out entrance. Following the path toward the air pocket inside the crushed arena, they readied their weapons as soon as they surfaced. Most of the area was in shadow, but the glow of the plentiful pyreflies and the light of torches placed further down the corridor gave them enough light to get a descent view of the interior of the structure they had entered.

Sports memorabilia - or what remained of it - from the Abes and other Zanarkand league teams was scattered around the walls, ceiling and floor. The natural decay of the structure was sometimes hard to tell apart from the damage done from the explosion that leveled it. A few skeletons littered the dry areas of the watery grave, but time and fiends disposed of most of the remains of the victims who had died there. Yuna found herself unable to concentrate on the task at hand because everywhere she looked she was struck by the enormity of the tragedy and began to feel as if she were searching for Tidus's ghost instead of him. That's when she realized that even though it felt as if she were catching a glimpse into his past, he had never _really_ been here when this happened. Shuyin had lived here. Tidus had lived in the dream.

Paine noticed Yuna's wide-eyed gaze and shudders. "Are you okay?" She changed into her dark knight sphere and readied her sword.

"Mh." Yuna made herself ignore the chill of the cold water beading on her skin and drew both of her revolvers.

Rikku laughed with a snort and pointed to Nooj, who had just put on his glasses. A fog had formed on the lenses due to the contrasting temperature between his warm face and the chill in the air.

He removed the glasses and turned an annoyed frown on the small thief for making unnecessary noise. Then, as his exertion from the swim cooled, he set the glasses on the bridge of his nose once more and hoisted his gun. Signaling his Youth League members to follow, he crept toward the hall where they had seen signs of life.

Rikku "hmpfed" at Nooj's back for being too serious, but then drew her twin daggers and looked to her friends. The Gullwings quietly trailed behind the Youth League, ready to confront whoever dared to confront them.

"Rikku, see how many of them you can stun," Paine whispered as they crouched behind a thick column.

"Okay, but ... I can only stop one of them at a time." The thief drew upon her magic and cast a bubble, a void of time, around the closest Echo Alliance member. The man froze in his tracks, but the other members who were talking didn't seem to notice that he was standing too perfectly still.

"Stay back here and use that spell as much as you can," Nooj whispered as he signaled his Youth League members to continue forward, but stay hidden.

"Okay." Rikku worked her magic again to cast on another Alliance member. It was an exhausting spell, but it would buy time and even the odds in their favor a little. She pouted slightly at being left alone in the creepy place, but she managed to cast the spell four times before the thieves in the hallway began to notice that their cohorts were turning into stiff mannequins.

Yuna and Paine followed ahead with Nooj.

As soon as they spotted the invading party, the Echo Alliance fired into them without hesitation. The Youth League returned fire from their hiding places and the ambush erupted into a small battle.

Yuna was the first to spot the room designated for the Abes, and the door was wide open, since they weren't expecting company. Running through the battle, she ducked inside and leveled both of her guns at Meimo in the center of the room. "Hold it right there!"

Kyudou and Meimo had been studying the conversation with Spira that Tidus's com sphere had recorded in the Via Infinito, but upon hearing the clash in the hallway, they argued about whether to join the fight or flee. "Ah, Lady Yuna … What a pleasant surprise." Kyudou pushed his tension aside and gave her a formal bow. Then, he tucked the com sphere into his pocket.

Paine and Rikku were only seconds behind her once the path to the room was cleared for them. Both of them looked weary from the short, but intense, effort to break through the guild's guards. Paine wore the crimson stains of her effort, whereas Rikku just looked plain drained of her usual energy. But both of them looked to Yuna with surprise "You know this joker?" Paine questioned her.

Yuna stared at Kyudou, puzzled and trying to remember, since he seemed to know her.

"We've never met face-to-face, but I'm sure you know of me. My name is Kyudou. I used to be the praetor of New Yevon."

Rikku gasped. "_You're_ the chairman's son? And this is where you ran away to after she rejected your marriage proposal?"

"I did not run away," Kyudou corrected her. "I moved to a more strategic location in the interest of my goals."

"Sounds like sour grapes to me." Paine became aware of the noise of the battle behind them quieting down a little and checked back over her shoulder, outside of the door, to see how Nooj and his volunteers had managed.

"No more sour than any other revolution against an oppressive establishment. New Yevon was biased against my father, so they didn't want to take a chance on having me in the office. I had hoped that Lady Yuna could help me resolve the situation. The people of Spira believe in her ability to calm the storms. Together, we could have prevented all that fuss between the Youth League and New Yevon."

Yuna frowned and turned her guns on him, instead of the summoner. "I won't marry for the sake of politics. I made that mistake once; it won't happen again."

Kyudou gave her a cynical smirk. "I could not have taken you into my trust any other way. The secrets that New Yevon holds are too important for a passing acquaintance to share."

"You mean like the secret of Spira's spheres?" Nooj entered and glared at the two ring leaders that they had cornered. "Baralai has already told the council working on the library about those."

"What?" Kyudou angered. "That idiot! The people of Spira are such superstitious yokels that they can't handle the knowledge of Spira's spheres. It will cause mass chaos if they find out they are on a space ship instead of a planet - one possessed of a tormented spirit no less. Can you imagine their reactions when they learn that they house a dimension of demons beneath their beloved temples? They'll try to clean out the Via Infinito, and that would be the end of it for all of us!"

Beside Kyudou, Meimo gave Yuna a sly glance. "It will be like what they did to your boyfriend, ... only worse."

"You mean what _you_ did to him after stirring up their worst fears!" Yuna turned her revolvers back toward the summoner and clicked the hammers, ready to fire.

Meimo dodged, thinking she was actually going to shoot him this time. Paine seized the opportunity to grab the summoner and flip him into a prone position. When Meimo looked up, the barrel of Nooj's gun pointed down.

Paine pressed her boot heel into his chest, pinning him to the ground. "I'd lie very still, if I were you," she warned.

Rikku and some of the other Youth League members surrounded Kyudou, reminding him it would be wise for him to be still as well.

Yuna stood over Meimo, continuing to fume. "Where's Tidus?" she demanded.

Meimo laughed. "The princess has come to rescue her knight in shining armor? That's priceless. Didn't you see what happened to him in Luca? If you've come to arrest me for a sending, the last time I checked it wasn't illegal. I was only doing my duty as a summoner - a duty which you failed," he reminded her from his position on the floor. "The people of Spira expect us to protect them from fiends, … not befriend them."

"He's not a fiend!" Yuna angered even more.

"We're not accusing you of a sending," Nooj calmly warned from behind his gun. "We're accusing you of raiding the Kilika temple and framing the Youth League and Machine Faction for it. You attacked Praetor Baralai that night with intent to kill, and you tried to steal spheres that, for the first time in a millenia, belong to the people of Spira. I have no guilt whatsoever acting as your judge, so you should be grateful I'm willing to take you back to Bevelle for a trial, instead of dealing with you myself."

"I was acting in Spira's best interest to take those spheres away from New Yevon." Kyudou defended his actions. "Those spheres have no business being put in a library where just anyone can see them. Do you realize how tainted everything about our way of life is going to look now?"

"Better to be tainted and truthful, than to live under fabricated lies anymore." Nooj gave the master thief a piercing gaze, while keeping his gun on the summoner.

Kyudou smiled. "Then we have the same goals in mind. I am a truth seeker just like yourself. Are you aware that one of Spira's spheres is a virtual treasure map of all the places the ship has been, picking up races and species from various worlds along the way?"

Yuna calmed her tone, but remained furious. "We know all about Spira's travel log. And we're not going to let you have it."

"Aren't you just a little bit curious to see the world we came from? See if our cities look like their cities ... See if our people look like their people ... No genuine curiosity?" Kyudou took a step toward Yuna, but met Rikku's daggers on either side of his throat, warning him to stay put. "Who are these Founders - these _gods -_ that had the arrogance to build our world and then destroy it without us having any say in the matter? Wouldn't it be wonderful to trace our echo back to Earth someday and say, 'Look at us now! We survived in spite of you!' We could make them proud." Kyudou grinned. "Or we could make them regret the day that they ever gave Bevelle orders to attack Zanarkand."

Yuna became alarmed at what he was suggesting. "You want to use Spira to punish Earth?"

"Nobody on Spira would want to do that!" Rikku argued.

Kyudou's handsome face dropped into a stone, cold stare. "The people of Spira don't know the truth about it. That's the only reason they wouldn't want to do it. Once the truth is revealed about the Founders, they will consider their losses and demand justice. But information should be released 'one thing at a time', … not offered up to everyone all at once in a shocking display at a public venue."

"That war happened over a thousand years ago," Yuna argued.

"But its been one _thousand_ years of destroyed civilizations and suffering ever since. Countless deaths ... All because the Founders told Bevelle to banish Yu Yevon's sorcery. And that came after years of being manipulated and exploited as a _colony ship_. Well, we are smarter and stronger now. We can show them how right they were to fear our magic and our strength. Yu Yevon rose up against Bevelle and taught it a lesson it would not soon forget for siding with the Founders against him. And yet, … Yu Yevon, the former maesters of Yevon, Trema, and even my father after them - all of them were cowards, preferring to run away and not look back."

"They preferred peace and independence, so they left the past behind to start over with something new." Yuna frowned, remembering Spira's desperate pleas concerning her guado husband and bi-racial child.

"But they were cheated out of their birthright when they were bullied away. _We_ were cheated out of _our _birthright to live on our home world. This ship is ancient. It's already breaking down, and it won't last forever. We need to return home. My father knew of spheres with a tracking device meant to send signals through space as a means of communications and distress coding. I believe at least one of those tracking devices must be included with the maps Spira hid. No one has seen the ship's travel log since the day that she murdered her commanding officer, … her father."

"Baralai showed us that sphere, but he said they've found no evidence of a tracer," Yuna informed him.

Kyudou sneered. "That's because the almighty Baralai does not have_ all_ the spheres. One of Spira's spheres did mention another sphere with a tracer. Unfortunately, that sphere was destroyed, so I can't prove it until I find the tracer myself," he said with calm determination. "I will use the tracers to find the Founders on planet Earth, and then I will do what no Spiran, including Spira herself, has had the guts to do. I will confront them with the truth and take back what they owe us - our world."

Yuna saddened in her anger and recalled Tidus's response to Leblanc after finding out that she was responsible for the rumors that he was unsent. "What purpose would that serve? There is nothing they can do to take back a thousand-year-old war. Revenge doesn't turn back time, or bring back what was lost. You don't even know whether Earth is safe or not. Spira _is _our world. It doesn't matter where we came from. This is our home now."

Kyudou's eyes narrowed on his captors. "I find your sentiments rather ironic. You seek to punish us because you feel we've wronged you. Yet you would deny me - all of Spira, actually - the right to punish Earth for wrongs that have plagued us for centuries. Which is it, Yuna? Do we have a duty to judge and punish one another's criminal acts, or not? You can't have it both ways." Kyudou turned his stormy gaze to his summoner. "Meimo, I think this conversation is over."

"It was over before it began," the summoner agreed and cast a teleport spell.

Nooj fired his gun, trying to stop their escape. He managed to hit the summoner once, but the remaining bullets passed through their ethereal, ghost-like bodies, as the magic of the teleport spell and carried them to a safer place. "Great. We'll never find them again now."

"Well, that was weird. They disappeared just like they were unsent." Rikku lowered her daggers now that the threat was gone.

Yuna lowered her guns and took the opportunity to look around the room. Unexpectedly, her eyes caught sight of something familiar on the floor near the crushed lockers. "Tidus has been here! Look!" Putting away her guns, she ran to pick up the discarded Auroch uniform pieces on the floor. "I was right. They didn't send him; they teleported him here to use him to get Spira's sphere."

"Only when you saw him, he wasn't here. They had already teleported him to the Via Infinito." Paine, discouraged at having lost the guild leaders, scanned the rest of the room for clues to where they might have gone. Then, she followed the back door down the tunnel toward the stairs that once led up to the sphere pool.

Yuna's sudden hope of finding Tidus nearby was just as suddenly dashed by Paine's pragmatism. Sitting back on her heels with a sigh, she folded the Auroch's unform pieces to her chest. She reminded herself that the Machine Faction was already on the job beneath the Bevelle temple. They would find Tidus and bring him home, ... before the Via Infinto claimed him forever.

Nooj wasn't sold on that reasoning, though. "Why would they need Tidus to get that sphere? He wouldn't know where it is. Spira hid it long before he - or even Shuyin - was ever born."

"It's because, just like you, they think he's unsent," Yuna answered.

The Youth League's meyven cast the ex-summoner a side-long glance for that verbal jab at his animosity toward him. "If that's the case, using Tidus to connect with Spira is actually a very clever plan, ... but also a very dangerous one."

Paine came from the tunnel with a sphere in her hand. "Maybe this will give us a clue?" She sat down next to Yuna, and when she had everyone's attention, she touched the activation button.

_The scene within the sphere opened to scan a stadium twice the size of the one in Luca. It was full of people, and an announcer could be heard in the background over the speakers._

_"I was in a coffee shop, running away from home when I heard the news. Our hero, Jecht, gone, vanished into thin air! My dad must have been his biggest fan. I knew how sad he'd be. Heck, we all were that day. 'Zanar,' I says to myself, 'What are you thinking?' I went running straight back home. We sat up talking 'bout Jecht all night. My dad and I never talked so much. Whoa... Didn't mean to reminisce, folks. Anyways... Ten years later, the Jecht Memorial Cup tournament is today! The two teams that have won through to the finals are...of course, the Abes from A-East and the Duggles from C-South. I know there's a lot of people out there today to see the star of the Abes! In just one year, he's become the team's number one player! He's Jecht's blood, and the new hope of blitzball! What kind of super play will he show us today? Will we see his father's legendary shot? I don't think I'm the only one excited here, folks!" (2)_

Yuna grabbed the sphere to stop it. "Jecht's blood ... Jecht's son was Shuyin. This is a sphere of Shuyin, not Tidus. We don't need to see any more."

Nooj grabbed it from her. "I think we do." He turned it back on.

In protest, Yuna turned her back to the sphere and closed her eyes as she hugged the Aurochs uniform. She was afraid to see what was in that sphere, but she had no idea why.

))((

Author's Notes:

1) A mapping error on my part should be noted from this chapter forward. While playing the game, for some reason it didn't mentally connect with me that the blitzball stadium and the location the final aeon were the same place. I thought the final aeon was in a temple, like all the others, and I wrote this story based on the concept that they were two separate places. Upon replay, I realized they are both called "Zanarkand Dome", and the interior of the "temple" is actually a ruined version of the stadium. But until I can think of a way to correct that without completely screwing chapters like this one, I have to continue with the idea that the game location is a temple, and the stadium is somewhere unknown buried under water. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

2) In-game dialog is used here. I don't claim it.


	22. Chapter 22: Summoning the Past

Chapter 22: Summoning the Past

_The ancient sphere panned the enormous, semi-dark stadium to take in all of the people that had come to see the tournament._

_"Toma! He's here!" a voice called._

_Toma, the sphere recorder, swerved to look behind him. Standing beyond the door in a long stairwell leading down to the locker room, some of the other Abes players could be seen. "It's about time. Hey, Jecht Jr. Since it's your first time up for the Jecht Cup, they've decided you're the one up for greeting the fans and throwing the ball into the sphere pool tonight - to honor your dad, and all that." The scene bumped a little and water sloshed beneath him, as the recorder shifted back to facing the pre-game stadium._

_"Yeah, be careful not to throw out an arm giving that ball a toss, or we might just have to bench you," a female player's voice sarcastically added from the stairs._

_There were chuckles from several people below in the locker room._

_A familiar voice answered their teasing. "Well, in that case I'll throw it in some sissy-ass, underhanded manner like you would."_

_More laughter and a few "ooohs" as the players continued to rag each other to ease their pre-game jitters ..._

Yuna's eyes opened, but she reminded herself it had to be Shuyin speaking.

_Though the sphere recorder still focused on trying to capture the preparations and excitement of the distant stadium, behind him a brief shower of water could be heard from the bottom of the stairwell. There was a murmur among the Abes players, a shuffle of feet on the stairs, and finally the sound of someone wading through water toward him. When it was followed by a thump and a sigh, the recorder turned toward Jecht's son to find him in his Abes uniform, rinsed and ready to start the game, but resting on one of the benches of the sphere pool's central machina ring. Blitzball tucked under the bench behind his feet, he leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes to wait._

Rikku's eyes widened with surprise. "Yunie, look! Look!"

Yuna shook her head. She didn't want to look.

Rikku took the sphere from Nooj and scooted in front of Yuna, presenting her with the view. When Yuna gave in to her curiosity, her heart skipped an anxious beat. She was surprised, and yet not surprised, that the seated player looked like Tidus.

_"Are you nervous?" Toma asked._

_"Nah, just thinking of what I'm going to rename that cup once it's ours." _

_The recorder chuckled and headed back to the stairs to leave their star player alone with his pre-game thoughts. _

_The sphere's image faded for a moment, but then continued with coverage from the opening ceremony. As the lights flashed on and the music started, letting everyone know that it was time to begin, a water spell was generated in the center of the double-axis rings while the cybernet activated to hold it in the shape of a large sphere. The ceiling of the dome split and unfolded, opening the stadium to the stars._

_On cue, Jecht's son stood from his resting place on the bench and stepped up on one of the small, raised platforms in the machina ring above it all. Ball tucked under his hand, he was the center of attention to thousands of cheering fans. The water spell finished forming with the dramatic flare of a fireworks display. Then, the laser lines blinked on inside the pool, and the scoreboard lit up. Jecht's son was introduced to the crowd, but his name and most of the introduction was drowned out in the roar of the crowd and music. He waved to the crowd until a loud whistle blew from the stadium speakers. Then, he drew his right arm back and catapulted the ball into the sphere pool - the signal for the teams to enter. He waited just long enough to be rejoined by his teammates on the central ring, and then he sloshed forward at a run, punching through the designated place in the cybernet and swimming to his game position. Another whistle was blown, and the ball went into play._

Yuna held her breath as she watched the game's progress. She found herself so drawn to the image in the sphere that she ended up cupping it into her own hands. Though she knew this sphere was recorded a thousand years in the past, it felt like she was watching the present. Though she knew it had to be Shuyin, it was so obvious that those moves and mannerisms belonged to Tidus.

_Above the noise of the cheering crowds and blaring music, sudden multiple explosions could be heard near the stadium._

_"What was that?" The recorder's voice was different now that Toma had his hands full with offensive moves against the Duggles._

_"I don't know," another voice answered. "Sounded like ... Oh my god! The pool's collapsing! Run!"_

_There was a long, low creak of impending doom from the machina supports and girders overhead. The cross-axis rings that formed the boundaries of the sphere pool shook and tilted. The scene was followed by the sudden jerky movements of someone running, a loud crash, and lots of screams. Then, a wall of water met the sphere's lens before the recording abruptly ended._

Yuna was quiet for a long moment while her second-hand witnessing of the tragedy weighed heavily on her shoulders. The recorders had probably died. Most of those people had probably died. How many similar spheres were out there recording that same exact moment of Zanarkand's death from multiple angles?

"Now, do you believe me?" Nooj broke the silence and drew her back to the present. "Tidus is just a reincarnation of Shuyin."

Yuna started to disagree with him, but she was ashamed to admit she honestly couldn't tell which of them was the person in the sphere. Remembering the very first Shuyin sphere she saw, she could have sworn he was Tidus. Everyone else thought so, too. Later, when she met him face-to-face in the Farplane glen, she mistook him for Tidus again, until he told her otherwise. Yet even then, knowing he was Shuyin, she couldn't separate her feelings for him from Lenne's.

Over time, she had learned how to distinguish between some of Tidus's and Shuyin's characteristics, in the same manner that someone familiar with other identical twins notices subtle differences that strangers might not. She knew their personality differences now, too. Tidus maintained a constant level of energy, but was rarely pushed over the edge. Shuyin maintained a constant level of calm, but was easily pushed over the edge. But just when she had finally convinced herself that they were two completely unrelated people, the Fayth explained that Tidus had, indeed, been created from part of Shuyin's soul.

Yuna came out of her thoughts to blink at Nooj's disapproving gaze. "This is a sphere of Shuyin," she finally decided, though she was trying to convince herself more than him.

"No, _that_ is a sphere of Tidus," Nooj countered, surprising her.

"Tidus never lived in this world until he came to us from the Fayth's dream. He didn't exist at the time this sphere was recorded." She put the sphere on the floor, though it hurt deeply to let go of it.

"You're in denial, Yuna. That looked and sounded _exactly_ like Tidus. But it was Tidus at a time when he shouldn't have been here. Which means Tidus really is Shuyin. That sphere proves it." Nooj remained adamant on that fact. "If Kyudou and Meimo are using Tidus to get the sphere, then it's because they've figured out he used to be Shuyin. And if Shuyin can possess Spira like he possessed us, he can find her travel log."

Rikku drew in a breath of alarm. "But if Shuyin hurts Spira, he could destroy the entire ship!"

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time Shuyin became a threat to Spira," Nooj muttered under his breath, glad that someone finally understood, … even if it was just Rikku.

Yuna shook her head fiercely. "Shuyin is at rest. He can't come back."

"He doesn't need to come back. If Tidus slips into Shuyin's frame of mind, he could become Shuyin once more," Nooj insisted.

"Tidus would never let that happen!" Yuna clutched the uniform closer to her. All she could think of now was the unnamed face she had seen in that sphere, and Shuyin's song that Tidus had played for her on the keyboard. What if Nooj was right? No, she refused to entertain that possibility. "We need to keep looking. We need to get him away from them."

"That, at least, we can all agree on," he consented.

Paine considered the thieves' escape for a moment. "They could be anywhere now, but if they're trying to revive Shuyin through Tidus, the most effective place to take him would be places he's very familiar with - like his home."

Rikku's brows rose without much hope at that prospect. "Yunie, did Tidus ever tell you where he lived?"

"Tidus never lived here. He lived in a dream that no longer exists," Yuna repeated, frowning at Rikku as if her cousin had turned on her.

Rikku blinked in surprise and drew back, not understanding why Yuna was suddenly so cross with her.

Paine grabbed the sphere and listened to the beginning with the announcers again. Then, she stopped it once she heard what she wanted to hear. "The Abes were from A-East. Shuyin probably lived in the same sector that he played for."

"We'll have to narrow it down more than that. A-East would most likely be in a northeast section of the ruins, but, since the ruins are so spread out, there's no telling how much ground A-East would cover," Nooj inserted.

"Maybe there's an address in his locker or something?" Rikku suggested and started to go to the lockers. It was obvious that one locker in particular had recently been swiped to clear the dust.

Yuna scrambled to her feet to get there first. Sliding in front of her cousin and putting her back to the door, she gave Rikku a pleading look. She didn't want to share that locker with anyone else, for some reason.

Rikku understood, and with a sympathetic nod stepped back.

Turning around to face the dusted door, Yuna touched the Abes symbol on the outside and gathered her courage for the moment of truth. Hesitantly, she reached for the name tag and cleared the dust with her thumb. "It says 'Tidus'," she announced, puzzled.

Paine quirked a suspicious brow. "Shouldn't that read 'Shuyin'?"

Even Nooj was surprised at the discovery.

Yuna pulled open the locker, and the first thing her eyes went to was the picture of Lenne on the inside of the door. _Tidus and Lenne?_ Yuna's heart began to beat faster in confusion as she reached for the items within, hoping something else would shed some light on the subject. She felt guilty for snooping, but she wasn't sure whether it was because they were Tidus's personal things or Shuyin's.

A feeling other than guilt was becoming tangible, too. Yuna had never been the type to feel jealous - not when Paine confessed her admiration, not when Rikku jokingly flirted, not even when reporters and female blitz fans seemed to melt at his charisma. Her only moment of jealousy had come from not realizing it was Shuyin in that sphere, instead of Tidus, asking for this "Lenne" person. Now, though she knew it was pointless and silly, the thought of Tidus having been with Lenne made her feel helpless and angry. She forced herself to stay focused on the fact that this was Shuyin's locker, regardless of any stupid name tag.

Her fingers hooked a small notebook underneath the toiletries and towels. Pulling it out, she sat down on one of the dusty benches and placed it on her lap over the Auroch's uniform. Flipping it open, the first thing she noticed was the backwards-tilted, handwriting. That definitely belonged to Tidus. The notes of game strategies, work out records, and silly doodles made out of boredom brought back her smile because it was all characteristic of something he would do. She turned the book over in her hands and opened it once more, this time catching sight of the inside cover. A series of numbers and names were scattered across it. It didn't look like an address, and yet it did. She supposed any city big enough to have coordinate-sectors for neighborhoods could have some kind of system for tracking streets. "Do you think Buddy could run these coordinates into one of his maps?"

Nooj sighed. "Worth a try. Let's round up these guys we knocked out and take them to Bevelle. We'll have to come back for Meimo and Kyudou, anyway." He limped among the bodies on the floor trying to think of an easy way to accomplish the task.

))((

Since his teleportation to his former Zanarkand bedroom, Tidus had spent the entire day sleeping. The door was locked, and he could barely see anything with only the glow of a few pyreflies to light the place. So, he found the bed and did the only thing he could do - rest.

He had no idea what time it was, or how much time had passed, when a noise from beyond the door woke him. His room was still dark, but there was a glow coming from around the sill now that enabled him to see through the shadows better. Tidus sat up and looked at the damage done to the room's structure. Cracks crawled up the walls and ceiling like spidery vines. Water stains and mold marred one side of the room where chunks of plaster had dropped out. The carpet and any clothing on the floor had been ruined with dirty water that had dripped in through the cracks. The housekeeping was a mess - even worse than he remembered it. Anything that had once been on his shelves was now all over the floor. It smelled like must and seawater, and the creaking sounds above and below him reminded him of the fact that this place, too, was probably completely submerged.

Despite the fact that everything leaned to the right, he stood and made his way across the debris-scattered floor to the toppled keyboard against the opposite wall. He remembered that keyboard, but he thought Auron had disposed of it long ago when he broke it. It was a reminder that this hadn't really been his room; it was Shuyin's.

On top of the keyboard, he found a broken frame of an Abes team portrait. _Kiryl, Toma, Naya, Luperis, Shaft, Suzam, Cetan_, ... The names came back to him as he touched each face. He paused over the player in the center holding the blitzball, though. It was disturbing to see his own face, knowing it wasn't really him. Trying to set the frame upright on the side of the keyboard where it belonged, he managed to knock a small holographic cube to the floor. After stooping to pick it up, he gazed at Lenne's portrait until unwanted concern for her welfare began to stir within him. "Shuyin," he spoke, as if the spirit could hear him. "Shuyin, no offense, man, but ... I gotta keep you out of my head. Or maybe I just gotta get out of this place."

Setting down the holograph cube, he headed for the door only to find it was still locked. "Aw, come on." He scowled in disgust and hit it with a fist. "I see a light on, so I know someone's out there!" he called. Angered that he was being held captive in his own home, Tidus took a step back and then gave the door a strong, solid kick. The door broke away from its hinges and fell - not really a difficult task considering the rust and decay that had taken its toll over time.

"Temper, temper." Meimo stood in the living room, waiting for him. He had used some healing potion to nurse the gunshot wound to his chest, but his robes retained the bullet hole and blood stain.

"Yeah, I'm losing my temper. I'm losing it because of you. Look, what do you want from me? I did what I could with Spira. She's not going to give it up. I can't help you anymore."

"You can, and you will, or you will be watching this world from the spirit plane for the rest of eternity." Kyudou stepped closer to him. "You will try to speak with Spira again. But this time, we want Shuyin to do the talking."

Tidus scowled and clenched his teeth. _This again?_ "Then I suggest you go to Bevelle and dig up his damn bones."

Meimo smiled, pleased. "Well, now. That's beginning to sound a little more like him, ... don't you think so?" He looked to Kyudou, amused.

Kyudou gave a small cough to clear his throat. "You're fortunate that you lived in a little houseboat, rather than one of the larger apartment structures, you know. The larger buildings collapsed like a house of cards. This little boat, however, was simply pushed under the water and trapped there by the fallen docks. Otherwise, we might not have been able to salvage all of your spheres to learn more about you." He gestured toward a chest on the other side of the room.

Tidus blinked in surprise at the collection. "_My_ spheres?" He had no idea so many spheres existed of his life, ... or rather, Shuyin's.

"Spheres of Jecht's games, your games, family, friends ... I told you we did our homework. I even have a few spheres from Bevelle on reports of your execution when you tried to steal Vegnagun a short time after the Machina War officially began." Kyudou was proud of his ability to dig up so much. "It was all over the headlines in the com casts, apparently - Zanarkand blitzball legend's son goes to Bevelle to rescue his girl and ends up getting both of them killed. What a tragic waste of life."

"Those are Shuyin's spheres, not mine."

"The fact that you possessed Baralai to reclaim the machina was quite amusing. At least, that's what my sources have reported from the outcome of that incident. He probably wouldn't want word of that to go public, though." Kyudou seemed to be contemplating a Plan C for a moment.

"How many times do I have to tell you people? I'm not Shuyin! I didn't possess anyone. I'm Tidus. I came from the Fayth's dream."

"Yes, we heard you say that to Spira, so I'm assuming that has something to do with how you came back. But whatever your unnatural existence is, your likeness to him is too coincidental to be ignored. Spira spoke to you once, so she may speak to you again. Once we have the sphere, you will be free to go, and you may take _his_ spheres with you, if you wish. Consider it our donation to the library project. Meanwhile, perhaps you should browse through them. You might be surprised at what you find." Kyudou gave him a wane smile. "By the way, the lower level of the boat is completely flooded because of the way the collapse of the piers pinned things down. Until we come back for you, I advise you to stay here, … where it is safe." He cued Meimo, and the summoner teleported them away.

Tidus stubbornly walked up the ramp to the front door and tried the handle, but it wouldn't budge. He turned and walked to the back of the living room where two long, curved bay windows sandwiched the kitchen in the center. The glass had withstood the pressure of time, but dark green algae coated it on the outside, and he couldn't see a thing beyond it. Sighing in discouragement, he looked around and tried to think of another escape plan. For the teleport spell to work, the thieves had to have initially come into the house boat by some other means.

He walked into the kitchen and stared at the shattered dishes all over the floor that had spilled from the cabinets. Any traces of food had long since decayed, and the same kind of structure damage was present here that existed in the rest of the boat. "Stay here and _starve_," he muttered to himself, wishing he had some food. His stomach growled in agreement.

They had said the bottom level was flooded. That must be where the opening to the outside was. Standing in the kitchen, Tidus faced the door that he knew would lead down a small stairwell into the bath and other bedroom, but he stopped short of touching the handle. A strange, yellow glow illuminated the sill on the other side - magical wards sealing him inside. It was some type of thunder spell by the look of it - a deadly combination with water surrounding it - and he had no healing potions because of being prepared only for a game. He decided not to take chances.

The strange sense of familiarity that surrounded him was beginning to crash down on him. Walking back into the living room, he allowed his attention to drift to the chest of spheres. He was very curious, but he tore his gaze away and walked back toward the door. He couldn't help but pause at the low shelf to the left of the ramp - the one that held the multiple trophies and awards his father had won. He picked up one and dusted it off to see the name, but then set it back down. Then, he moved to sit down on the training mats in the corner with his back to the spheres. Drawing his knees to his chest, he sighed heavily and set his chin on them.

He could see the keyboard in his room from where he sat. The song he remembered playing on it came back to him once more. Lenne had come to visit the day that he finished writing it. He played the song for her, and she snuggled close, just as Yuna had. She had called it beautiful, just as Yuna had. And then ... Tidus shook his head to snap out of Shuyin's memory. "No. Think of something else."

But he couldn't think of something else. The entire sequence of events lay open before him now. He had walked her to a concert afterward, and they ran into her little brother along the way. Her little brother had made a slime toy of some kind with a chemistry kit and was showing it off to them, when he stole it and slapped it into the kid's face, making him giggle. It was hard to make such a serious boy giggle, so he took pride in the fact that he could do it on occasion. He stayed with her brother to watch her concert and walked them home afterward, instead of taking the "snake". That had been the street name for the swift, yet practically invisible, transportation system that moved people around the city in a blur of light. He had vowed that someday he would own a motorbike instead of having to take that crowded thing everywhere.

He used to walk from the harbor where he lived down to where the neon lights of the clubs were always beckoning. Hanging out there or on the waterfront with his teammates held many memories, good and bad. They celebrated wins together, consoled each other on their losses, and they had been there to pull him out of trouble the night that he punched a fan who got in his face about a bad game. They were some of his best friends.

He remembered his best friend from childhood - how he victory-danced around the living room after beating him at their favorite electronic game. That friend's sister had laughed at him when he refused to get into the pool for his first swim lessons, … until his dad picked him up and threw him in. Later, she gave him his first kiss and some candy.

One memory continued to string along after another, ... and another. He kept telling himself that they were Shuyin's memories, but they felt like his own. Faces, names, and events spilled into the forefront of his thoughts as they never had before, as if some kind of dam had burst from the pressure of holding them far beyond his grasp.

Beginning to panic, Tidus tried to find something to keep his mind from wandering in so many directions. He made himself focus on the fishing rod lying against the door in the corner. It had belonged to his dad before he disappeared. His dad always yelled at him to be quiet when he was fishing, but then his dad usually yelled a lot in general. He remembered that he would wait until his dad went fishing to practice his blitzball, so he could be free from harassment about what he couldn't do yet. But then his father would come home drunk and pick something insignificant to argue about. Minutes later it would erupt into a fight. It was frightening, ... and embarrassing. His mother would let off steam by playing the keyboard or working with her potted flowers on the upper deck. But he would go to his room to cry and hate him.

Tidus shook his head. _Think of something else!_

His eyes drifted to the furniture, and he could see his mother's emotionless shell walking aimlessly around the houseboat as she did her chores, grieving the disappearance of her husband until she was no longer responsive to anyone, including him. Then Auron mysteriously showed up to help care for them. Fortunately, Auron had been the one to discover that she had passed on. The last time he saw Auron before Sin's attack was at the front door. He had scolded him for a bad call that made his team lose a match. Tidus found himself wishing Auron were here now. He'd know what to do to get out of this mess. Auron always knew what to do.

Tidus paused with realization as the flow of memories slowed. Auron was _his _memory. Shuyin could not have known Auron because Shuyin died before Lord Braska took his guardians on the pilgrimmage to Zanarkand. Tidus knew he had to stick with memories Shuyin couldn't share. He shifted to a cross-legged position, closed his eyes, and tried desperately to think of something else unique to himself. What else did he have that Shuyin did not? "Yuna ..."

He remembered their first meeting in the temple when she passed her apprenticeship to become a summoner and fainted on the stairs. He remembered their first conversation. She had been the only one who believed him when he said he was from a living Zanarkand. He remembered teaching her to whistle and holding her in his arms when she cried as she stubbornly refused to give up her pilgrimage to live a normal life. Well, now she was living a normal life, ... sort of. All he wanted was a normal life, too, but there was nothing normal about him. He existed unnaturally. That's why he was always mistaken for the person from which he was made. Having come from part of Shuyin's soul, he did have a connection to the real world, but it was from the past, ... this City of the Dead. He just couldn't remember it, ... until now. And now, he was trapped by those shared memories.

Growling to himself and clasping his hands over his head, Tidus angrily rose to his feet. "Shuyin! I don't want your memories! I want to be me! I want out of here!"

"Then leave."

Tidus spun around, surprised by the response, and was astonished to see that Shuyin's spirit had coalesced in the pyre flies on the ramp behind him. And this time, Lenne was with him.


	23. Chapter 23: Body and Soul

Chapter 23: Body and Soul

Lenne stepped forward and touched a thin hand to Tidus's cheek, marveling at his likeness to the one she loved. They had never met, yet she felt like she'd known him forever.

Tidus looked from her to Shuyin with disbelief. "You came?"

"You called." The corner of the spirit's mouth slowly turned up in a wry smile. "Okay, technically you're ticked off, but yelling at me and asking for help are practically the same thing, right?"

Still feeling overwhelmed with frustration and worry, Tidus saw no humor in the situation like Shuyin apparently did. "I don't want to merge with your memories."

Shuyin shrugged. "Then don't."

"But, they're all over me here. I can't shake them!"

"Then leave." Shuyin approached him with a relaxed manner. "You know, I'd be amused at the idea of having an idiot little brother like you, if it weren't for the fact that you're me."

Tidus put up his hands to keep him away. "I'm not you."

"Okay, you're not me. But you're based on a warped memory of me, and you're wearing my clothes." Shuyin slapped his hands out of his way and tried to touch the fabric of the shirt. "I never got to go back for those, you know. I thought they'd be at the bottom of the ocean by now."

Tidus stared at his hands. The slap had felt like a small breeze passing through him, but it was enough to move them. He was surprised that the spirit still had enough presence in him to be able to make contact between worlds like that after having been sent. "They were in my locker."

"You mean _my_ locker." Shuyin folded his arms at his chest and peered beneath his scruffy blond bangs at his mirror image.

Lenne laughed lightly behind her hand. "He's different, but he's still a lot like you, isn't he."

"Please. He's embarrassing. He's like every dorky personality glitch I ever had rolled into a brand new dork." But even Shuyin seemed amused at their similarities.

Tidus frowned at Shuyin's commentary all the same.

"Stop teasing him. He seems sweet." Lenne gave him an assuring smile. Humor aside, however, she considered how they found him and became concerned. "You go by Tidus, right? Why are you here?"

Tidus looked into Lenne's eyes and was at a loss for words for a moment. It felt like meeting an ex-girlfriend that drifted away from the relationship somehow. He blushed at realizing how well he knew her, even though they'd just met. But when he found his voice once more, he explained the situation to them as best he could, including everything he could think of about his false sending, the thieves, and their desire to get Spira's sphere.

When he finished his story, Lenne looked to Shuyin with worry. "We should help him."

"There's nothing we can do," he reminded her. "Those at rest have no power among the living. We can barely stay long enough to speak with him."

"But with that sphere being a map of origins, those thieves might harm Spira, and other worlds as well. And Yuna must be very worried about him, thinking he's been sent." Lenne gave him a lingering, pleading look.

Shuyin understood what she was thinking, so he gave a small nod of concession. Then, he turned his attention back to Tidus. "If I were able to help, would you trust me?"

Tidus was doubtful. "You can get me out of here?"

"I think so."

Then he realized what Shuyin was suggesting. "Does it mean I have to let you …"

"I'll release you when it's over."

Tidus swallowed nervously at the thought of letting Shuyin take possession of his mind and body again. "Will I still be me?"

"You'll probably gain some of my memories, but I still believe you're different enough from me to remain who you are. It's just that there may be no way to erase the knowledge of the past once you gain it." Shuyin tried to think of a better way to explain it and smiled lightly at the example that came to him. "Can you remember writing secret messages in lemon juice on a piece of blank paper?"

Tidus wondered what this had to do with anything, but the obscure childhood memory came to him as soon as it was spoken. "Holding it next to a candle made the message show up."

"If that paper were torn in half and new, different messages were written on each piece, the old message would still be there, right? We're kinda like that. Being here has put you too close to the candle, so you're beginning to see old writing under the new message. Once you know it's there, you can't make it go away, but it doesn't change the new messages any. Gaining new memories won't make old memories go away. But the old ones will always be there, waiting to be accidentally or intentionally exposed to the light."

Tidus weighed the consequences for a long moment as indecision gnawed at him.

"The alternative is to return to the Via Infinito for those thieves - unarmed. You could die there. You don't want both of us to die in Bevelle's dungeons, do you?"

"I don't want to lose this life. I don't want to lose Yuna."

"Do you want me to help you find a way back to her?"

"Yes," he answered with a broken voice.

"Then I need a way back into your world. I need a physical form." Shuyin took a step forward.

Tidus backed up a pace and held out his hands for the ghost to keep his distance, but he did not resist as Shuyin pressed his hands against his and then blurred right into his body. Surrounded by pyreflies, Tidus drew a deep breath of air, and Shuyin was among the living once more.

The combined entity turned to Lenne with a more serious demeanor than he had been wearing before. "Go to Yuna. I'll take care of this end."

Lenne tilted her chin at the strange melding. He looked like Tidus, but she knew Shuyin was speaking. "Let's hope that Yuna is wearing my dress sphere, or is somewhere that I can reach her." She gave him a light kiss and faded amid the colorful particles of light that had given her temporary form.

Tidus touched his cheek where it felt, for a moment, as if a butterfly had brushed him.

))((

The Gullwings had collected the thieves that they captured below the Zanarkand stadium, and flew them to Bevelle to be held for their trials. After that, they had to meet with Baralai and update him on what they had learned. There had been no word of Tidus spotted back in the Via Infinito yet. So, by the time Buddy started working on a new sonic platform map of the northeastern quadrant of the sunken ruins, it was late and everyone needed some rest. The search for Tidus would have to wait until morning. The Youth League volunteer soldiers set up tents under the stars, after chasing monkeys away from their chosen spots, and the Gullwings were tucked into their red, metallic nest and perched on the shore for the night.

In the early morning hours, though it was still dark, Yuna was on the hill overlooking the ruins. She was waiting for the sun to show itself on the horizon, so the search could begin. If Tidus wasn't in the Via Infinito, then he had to be where Shuyin's influence would be the strongest, … somewhere in that watery grave, ... supposing Nooj's theory was right.

In her over-sized nightshirt and fuzzy slippers, Rikku yawned and made her way up the hill to where Yuna sat. After draping Tidus's blanket across her cousin's shoulders, she passed her a bottled drink and sat down next to her. "I couldn't sleep, either. I would have warmed us some cocoa, but I didn't think I could carry everything out here without spilling it." She tugged at the tab-twist opening of the drink, but was unable to pull it out.

Yuna smiled at her cousin's offering and drew the blanket around herself to fend off the chilly air. She put her nose to the soft material and breathed in his scent - a mixture of soap, sun lotion, and cologne from taking so many showers throughout the day after training and practice sessions. It did comfort her, but it also made his absence more obvious. She set down the drink, not feeling thirsty.

"Don't worry, Yunie. Buddy will narrow down our places to search, and if they haven't found Tidus under Bevelle by then, we'll fish him out of the ocean here in no time flat."

"I miss him so much," Yuna whispered as a tear rolled down the inside line of her delicate nose. "I know that preventing Meimo and Kyudou from getting that sphere is more important, but ... I'm so afraid of losing him again."

Rikku's brows rose with worry. "Now, now. Don't talk that way. We'll find him. You'll see."

Yuna wordlessly leaned against Rikku's shoulder and buried half of her face in the blanket to cry.

Rikku looked down sympathetically at her cousin, then blinked up at the fading moon, trying not to let the contagious emotion get the best of her. "Oh, Yunie, don't do that." Her voice rose two octaves until it was nearly a squeak as she tried to fight it and talk at the same time. "I brought out the drink and blanket to comfort you and everything so you wouldn't cry, and now you're going to cry anyway. And I ... I can't keep doing this because it makes my eyes look all puffy and swollen. But I can't help it because I see you crying and it just makes me ... ugh!" She finally sighed in defeat and leaned her head on Yuna's, patting her back, sharing her sadness.

As Rikku held her for support, however, Yuna became aware of another presence. Pyreflies were drawing close to her and surrounding her like a magnet. She looked over her shoulder and saw nothing, but she knew what she felt. "Lenne?"

Rikku lifted her head and sniffled. "What?"

"Lenne's spirit ... She's here somewhere, ... nearby. It's very weak, but I can feel it."

"I don't see anything." Rikku looked at the pyreflies, but they were too thin for anything to be able to take shape.

"Why would Lenne be trying to reach me?" While Yuna did not mind the spirit's attempt to contact her, it did make her wonder what was wrong. She folded her arms, and Tidus's blanket, tighter around herself. _Tidus and Lenne_ ... Yuna wasn't so sure she wanted to see her, after all.

Having already appeared for a long time to Tidus, and without anything to anchor her to the present reality, the spirit's presence began to drift away.

"Wait! I don't understand why you came!" Yuna called to the pyreflies as they rose away from her. She immediately wished she had not chased her away. She knew she should apologize for not wanting to see her. It was pointless to be jealous of a thousand-year-old spirit, ... wasn't it?

))((

Just before dawn, when Meimo and Kyudou reappeared in the submerged houseboat, they found Tidus asleep on the training mat. None of the spheres looked as if they had been touched. "Looks like he has chosen to defy us." Meimo's tight top-knot of sandy brown hair had been undone for him to get some sleep, but his flowing locks did nothing to lessen the severity in his sharp green eyes. He strode forward and gave the blitz player a kick to the ribs. "Wake up." He reached to the back of Tidus's shirt to pull him upright.

Tidus groaned and winced at the awful waking sensation. As he was forced to sit up, Meimo walked a circle around him, studying him closely. Tidus's angry eyes followed every move he made.

"How did you sleep?" the summoner finally asked.

"Fine, until you came in."

"Stand up."

"You didn't say the magic word," Tidus retorted.

"_Now_." Meimo kicked him once more.

The blitzball player rose to his feet and, in one swift motion, had the collar of the summoner's robes clenched in a tight fist. His brows knit in anger, but his voice remained calm. "Kick me again, and your head's going to find out how a blitzball feels at the end of a bad day."

Kyudou's stormy gray eyes studied Tidus with keen interest from beneath his long, black bangs. "Let him go."

Tidus pushed the summoner back, but continued to glare at him.

"Back away, Meimo," Kyudou coolly instructed his summoner.

Meimo scowled right back at Tidus and dusted the wrinkles from his layers of robes, but he obediently followed Kyudou's command and backed away from their hostage.

Kyudou drew closer to Tidus and made mental notes of the subtle change he saw in his eyes. "I think it worked." The leader of the Echo Alliance allowed himself a genuine smile.

"Of course it worked. You wanted Shuyin to do the talking from now on, didn't you?" Tidus's face and voice shifted slightly to reveal a ghostly possession - two nearly identical layers of himself. "Well, you know what they say. Be careful what you ask for. You just might get it."

Kyudou was stunned at the subtle transformation as Shuyin's persona physically solidified over Tidus's. "Quickly, ... send him to the Via Infinito!" he told Meimo. "Shuyin, this is exactly what you need to do with Spira. If you take over her mind, you can make her reveal the location of the travel log," he ordered in excitement.

As Meimo lifted his staff to begin his teleportation spell, however, Shuyin focused his dark glare on the summoner, and cast his own mind-maddening magic. The summoner paused, cried out in anguish, and grabbed his head. "No! NO! Get him away from me!"

Kyudou's eyes widened in shock. "What have you done to him? Release him at once!" he commanded.

"Or what? He'll _send_ me?" Shuyin asked in cynical amusement. "You made the mistake of thinking you could control me, didn't you. But you aren't the one who summoned me. Shame on you for wanting me to attack Lady Spira to steal her secret maps."

Kyudou drew his sword and lunged toward Shuyin in anger. The blitz player easily dodged the strike and ran for the door. Possessed of Shuyin's spell, Meimo used his bladed rod to strike out at Kyudou and sliced right through fabric to flesh. Kyudou turned on his companion in astonishment just in time to block a second attack. Shuyin then cast the same maddening spell over Kyudou.

Struggling against an overwhelming urge to attack Meimo, the guild leader made himself put away his sword and tried to back away from his summoner. Shuyin shook his head at Kyudou's strength of will and focused more intrusive magic into him, until an involuntary blizzaga spell formed on the guild leader's lips and fingertips. But with the last ounce of his own will, Kyudou turned his aim toward Shuyin. The blast hit the blitzball player, as well as the door and wall behind him, freezing it in a solid sheet of ice.

Meimo slashed toward Kyudou's back, opening another large wound in the guild leader's body. Unable to resist the hate boiling over inside of him any longer, Kyudou protested with a loud cry, but focused his next spell on his friend.

Shuyin drew a sharp breath at the pain from the ice shard in his thigh. It had been a long time since he felt physical pain - since he had felt anything physical for that matter. With Meimo and Kyudou fighting each other, the blitzball player threw his weight against the door. He hoped it could be easily broken, but the ice fortified any weakness that developed over time. He began to view the situation as hopeless and was about to give up when a dose of determination surged through him.

_We have to get out of here! Keep trying!_ Tidus's intuition urged.

Shuyin drew the ice shard out of his thigh and ignored the throbbing wound to search for anything of use toward escape. While Kyudou and Meimo continued to fight, he limped across the room on his uninjured leg, grabbed a small metal stool, and went to the large bay window on the right. Using as much strength as he could muster, he slammed the stool against the ancient glass. With repeated hits, the window cracked. Water began to stream through - first a little, but then a lot. As it poured down into the little boathouse, Shuyin thrust the stool into the glass one more time. The entire window shattered under the pressure, and the incoming seawater pushed him, Meimo, and Kyudou against the other side of the living room.

Leaving the two Echo Alliance thieves to fend for themselves, Shuyin swam through the broken window outside the boat to the fallen pier. In the dark, freezing water, he had to grope his way through the maze of barnacle and algae covered steel and squeeze through narrow passages between thick, broken slabs of concrete. The glowing eyes of sea fiends drew near following the scent of blood from his leg, so he paused long enough to cast a few more confusion spells toward them. Then he swam fast and hard through the sunken ruins to escape them. When he finally broke the surface, he paused again to draw air into his lungs and blink the salt water from his eyes. Then, spotting the Celsius in the distance, he kicked back under and swam toward the shore.

))((

"Yunie! Look!" Rikku pointed to the water. Above the reflective surface, against the sunrise in the painted sky, a small light colored object bobbed toward them with steady speed. "Maybe Lenne was trying to tell us he was on his way!"

As she stood, Yuna's eyes focused hard on the advancing object. Was it him? Could it be? She held her breath as she impatiently waited for the object to draw near, but as soon as she could see the yellow shirt and mop of golden blond hair, she was certain. "Tidus!" She dropped the blanket, jumped down from the ledge, and ran toward him. "Tidus!"

))((

Shuyin swam until his feet could finally touch down. He waded the rest of the way through the shallow water, until Yuna closed the distance and threw her arms around his neck and shoulders. She was so overjoyed, that her hug nearly squeezed the remainder of air from his lungs. "Yuna ..." He coughed up seawater and shivered as he clung to her. "I'm ..." He coughed hard again.

She took into account his ragged condition and helped him run the rest of the way to dry land, where he collapsed on his hands and knees in the sand at her feet.

"I'm surprised you're here," he said between labored breaths. But when he lifted his chin to explain what had happened, he received a stunning, warm kiss.

After an awkward moment, Yuna seemed to realized he wasn't eager to return the sentiment and drew back wondering what was wrong. "You look so pale." A visible sense of dread came over her, and then her fingers traced his brow, cheekbones, jawline ... Shaking her head in disbelief, she stood and backed away.

"It's not what you think." Shuyin shivered with the shock of cold and fatigue for the first time in a thousand years, but he made himself stand.

Her eyes widened with growing fear. "Where's Tidus?"

"He's here."

"_Where?_" she demanded.

He patted a hand to his chest. "Here. With me." But he could tell that only increased her fear, rather than comforting her. "He asked me to help, but I can give him back to you now." Shuyin closed his eyes and focused his attention on leaving Tidus's body. Usually, all he had to do was separate from the mind of his host and walk away. But when he searched for a point where he and Tidus divided, he saw only himself. He knew where he ended, but where did Tidus begin? He tried to reach into Tidus's memories, but found himself locked completely out.

Yuna waited with increasing anxiety. "This is why Lenne came to me. She knew about this. What have you done to Tidus? Shuyin, please release him," she begged.

"I'm trying."

"Then why isn't it working?"

"I don't know." Shuyin touched his arms, unable to figure out why he was still trapped within Tidus's skin. "Is it because he's part of me? Or is it because his body's not real? It worked in Guadosalam's Farplane, but I guess that was a shorter -"

"Shuyin, how could you!" More distraught than he'd ever seen her before, Yuna tore away from him to run back to the airship.

"Yuna!" In spite of his weariness from the long, difficult swim, and the pain in his leg, he tried to jog after her. "Yuna, wait!"

Rikku was cleaning up the items where they had been sitting. "Wait! What's the matter?" she tried to ask as her cousin breezed past her.

Shuyin slowed down and paused at Rikku's side to clutch his leg and catch his breath again.

Utterly bewildered at why Yuna wasn't happy that Tidus was back, Rikku draped his blanket around his shoulders to warm his chills. "I can't believe she ran away like that. What is _wrong_ with her? She's been one soggy noodle since we thought you were a goner." She gave him a hug. "Well, I'm glad to see you, anyway."

Shuyin accepted the blanket and the hug, but kept an eye on Yuna's flight until she disappeared inside the airship. "Thanks, um, but ..." Apologetically, he pulled away from Rikku and continued his chase. Just outside of the cabin, he caught up to Yuna and snagged her by the arm. "Please listen to me. Tidus is still here. I swear it."

She whirled on him and snapped her arm away from his grasp. "Then release him!"

Shuyin stared at her tear-streaked face and words almost failed him. "I can't. I want to, … but I can't."

"You can't because the pieces of your soul came back together. Is that it? Because that means the only one left is _you_! Well, I don't want you! I want _him_! And I want him the way he used to be!"

"Yuna, he's still here! Look at me!" He pleaded with her. "I'm him."

"No, you're not! I don't care how much you look like him! You are _not_ the person that I love!" She broke away again and ran the rest of the way through the cabin to her bed, where she fell into her pillow to cry.

Half of his heart felt as if it had just shattered all over again.

_Now what? _he asked himself.

_Keep trying_, his instinct answered.


	24. Chapter 24: Deathseeker

Chapter 24: Deathseeker

Yuna's emotionally charged shouting and the rush up the stairs to her bed woke Paine from her sleep. Sitting up with a yawn, she was about to question her friend's unusual behavior when she saw Tidus slowly approaching the top of the stairs , favoring a wounded leg. "You're back." She blinked in surprise.

He acknowledged her greeting, but went straight to Yuna.

Like Rikku, Paine knew something wasn't right if Yuna was unhappy to see him. She hated to eavesdrop, but her instinct told her there was reason to be concerned. Rikku had followed him up the stairs and Paine gave her a questioning look, but the small thief could only shrug in bewilderment.

He was dripping wet, so he didn't sit on the bed. Instead, he crouched next to it. "Yuna, ... Shuyin was the only weapon I had against the guys that were holding me. He was the only way home to you."

"_Shuyin?_" Paine exchanged a frown with Rikku. Getting off of her bed, she joined Rikku in moving closer, trying to get a better look at him.

Yuna tried to stop crying, but she just couldn't accept this.

"Now you won't even look at me?" His voice caught in his throat with heavy sadness. "Yuna, please don't send me away because of him. Please … don't ever send me away again." Too physically spent to know what else to say, he let his forehead rest on the pillow behind hers and sniffled with a chill.

))((

His personality had switched so subtly that Yuna had not even noticed when it happened. But hearing the emotion behind those words, she choked back her sobs and lifted herself from her pillow to look again. Cautiously, she touched his damp hair and sifted a few strands through her fingers. Was it the same cut? The same color? He lifted his head, his expression telling how badly he wanted to be believed, but his face was not quite the face that should have spoken those words. "I don't know who you are anymore," she confessed, trying to blink away tears that would further distort his image. "I hear Tidus, ... but I see Shuyin."

"Tidus has always been, and will always be, a part of _me_, Yuna. His name came from one of my nicknames," he lowered his gaze to the blanket. "It's a … stupid story how it came about and stuck. But it was a heck of a lot better than being called Jecht, Jr."

Realizing that Shuyin was speaking now, Yuna rolled over and presented her back to him.

"When you needed help sending my old man, the Fayth chose me. But they knew I was still upset over what happened during the war, so they used _only_ that part of my soul that wished I had a second chance to do things differently. Tidus is the person I could have been under different circumstances. He's the one who came to you, … but he's still an alternate _me_. I want him to have that second chance just as much as he does. So when he asked for help finding a way back to you, I knew _exactly_ how he felt, and -"

"You didn't have to take control of him like this. You knew something like this could happen!" she answered in angry protest, refusing to face him. "We were going to look for him again, if you'd just waited!"

"Waiting might have been too late," he sternly reminded her. "He was losing his mind being back on that boat, and they were going to send him back into the Via Infinito - _unarmed_. He could have been lost forever if he died in there. At least I brought him back alive. Although, … neither of us are very patient, I guess." Shuyin sighed at his intrinsic flaws. "Look, I don't know why I can't leave his body, but he's fighting really hard to keep his own mind apart from me right now, believe me. Just … please don't give up on him because you can't bring yourself to see him in me."

Yuna squeezed her eyes shut and tried not to listen.

))((

Shuyin watched Yuna's back as she continued to cry. Then, helpless to ease her fears and resentment, he moved to sit on Tidus's futon. His leg was killing him. Rubbing his hands over his cold face, he marveled at the sensation of feeling his own skin once more. It felt incredibly different from possessing a stranger's body. From his peripheral vision, however, he could see that Rikku had crept near. So, with a resigned sigh, he turned to let her have a good look at his face.

Rikku scrutinized him with uncertainty, but then registered soft surprise. "Ohhhhh. You really _are_ Shuyin. And you're alive this time."

"Not really. This body is an illusion, almost like the one I can draw from pyreflies. But this one's stronger - strong enough to feel alive again. Tidus can feel pain, get cold, bleed, feel hungry ... I didn't think about any of that when I offered to help him escape." He held his hands before himself - his own hands this time, instead of some stranger's.

"Is ... Tidus still alive?"

"Yes. Two minds in one body, but he let me have control so I could be his weapon, while he concentrated on protecting his sense of self. Only, … I can't leave for some reason." Shuyin felt Tidus's heart constricting within him at the thought. "I can't return to Lenne this way - not without destroying the illusion by jumping back into the Farplane." He supposed the Fayth could always summon Tidus back, but ... what if they couldn't?

"What of Meimo and Kyudou?" Paine asked, standing nearby.

"They've probably either drowned or destroyed each other. That was the plan, anyway."

Rikku went to Yuna's dresser and grabbed the blitzball sphere taken from the sunken stadium. Returning to Shuyin, she tapped his arm to get his attention and offered it to him. "We found this near the Abes locker room. Is it you, ... or him?"

Shuyin was hesitant to accept the sphere, but touched the activation button and watched as it played the opening ceremony of the game again. "It's both of us," he said after a thoughtful moment.

"But it looks more like Tidus. That's his uniform."

Shuyin's brow dipped in mild annoyance. "What is it with him claiming my uniforms? I had more than one, you know, and I remember that one very well. But he's not the sole owner of it." He realized that wasn't the answer Rikku was waiting for. "Look, it's okay if you don't get this. I know it's confusing and weird." He indicated the blitzball game playing. "But this tournament happened before he was separated from me to become his own little … whatever he is. So, in a sense, yeah, that's him. He was there and played in the tournament because I was there and played in the tournament. He remembers this game exactly the same way I do, … well, except for how it ended." Shuyin turned off the sphere and passed it back to her. "The Fayth tried to make him to look slightly different, like a twin, so they could tell us apart. But maybe that's not so easy for everyone else to see. They altered his background a bit to prevent him from making the same mistakes I did, because it was the only way they could use him to defeat Sin. But before the Fayth got hold of him, he was me."

"How do you know he remembers a different ending to the game?" Rikku asked, curious.

"He told me."

Rikku's brows rose in awe. "He talks to you?"

"You know how people sometimes hear a little voice in their head? Well, he's quiet, but I can really hear his thoughts."

"Can he hear us talking about him?"

Shuyin blinked at her for a moment, as if the answer should have been obvious after everything he just tried to explain. "Um, ... yeah. He hears everything I do. He's me, ... I'm him ..."

"Hi, Tidus!" Rikku yelled into his ear and waved. "Come back soon! We love and miss you!"

Shuyin winced at the sudden volume increase and pushed her back at arm's length. "He's _quiet_ - not deaf!"

"Oh. Right."

Paine sat down on the floor and drew her knees to her chin. "How did you survive Bevelle's attack after the stadium collapsed?"

Shuyin gave a somber shrug. "Luck, I guess. I was above the sphere pool when the bombs hit, and then I fell back into the water as the whole stadium collapsed and sank." He released Rikku, but kept a cautious distance from her in case she decided to blast his ear again. "I went looking for Lenne, and we helped as many survivors as we could, but ... most of them didn't make it. It was chaos after that because the explosions took down the entire network of floating bridges and piers. Zanarkand was utterly destroyed. But in the dream, Tidus got sucked into Sin to be brought here, instead. He didn't have to relive any of the aftermath of the attack, … or the war. That's the main reason he's different from me now."

"So, Tidus came here to save the world, but you went to Bevelle to try to destroy it?" Paine sardoncially quipped.

Shuyin didn't find much humor in her observation of his paradoxical nature. "I went to Bevelle to save Lenne. Tidus would have done the same for Yuna. If she was in trouble, he'd do whatever it took to save her."

Rikku looked at Yuna, lying still and quiet on her bed with her back to them. "You know, … somebody should take a look at that leg wound and heal it," she hinted.

Paine could see Yuna's face from where she sat, and she could tell she was in no mood to interact with Shuyin at all, not even for this. "You'd better go ahead and do it," she quietly advised.

"Me?" Rikku squeaked.

"You healed Baralai." Paine tilted her head. "Or did that have nothing to do with his wounds?"

Rikku frowned at the warrior's insinuation. "Baralai didn't have to take off his pants for that."

Shuyin frowned in puzzlement. "Excuse me?"

"He won't have to take his pants off. Just cut the fabric."

"And ruin a good pair of pants? Wakka would kill me for destroying an Auroch's uniform."

"They're already ruined, Rikku. Look at them. Big hole, blood, seaweed crud ... That's not going in the laundry - not on my wash day, at least."

"Oh, fine." Rikku put down the blitzball sphere and dug a small pair of scissors out of her drawer. "Hold still so I don't accidentally cut you," she ordered, giving him a small push back. "I am never going to hear the end of that about Baralai, am I?"

"Probably not," Paine answered in all honesty.

Rikku crouched to snip the fabric away from the wound on Shuyin's thigh, but when she got too close to where it was tender, he jerked his leg away and blocked her hand from continuing. Her response was a dirty look and a smack of reprimand to his head. "Stop moving."

"Don't smack me," he protested and rubbed the back of his head.

"I always smack you when you do something stupid."

"Or when you say something stupid," Paine added. "Which is quite often." She paused and looked aside, realizing how ridiculous that sounded to be talking to Shuyin as if he were Tidus with amnesia.

"How does he live with you?"

Rikku straightened and placed her hands on her hips. "What's that supposed to mean? What did he say about me?"

Shuyin sensed Tidus warning him to shut up quickly or he'd probably regret it. Shuyin opened his mouth to say something, but then changed his mind and promptly closed it again.

"We'll try this again. Now, hold still," Rikku ordered, pushing his knee back down and continuing to cut the tough fabric around the wound until it was exposed. Then, she placed a hand over the gash left by the ice shard and used her fingers to pinch the wound shut as she wove white magic around it.

"That hurts," he grumbled through clenched teeth, trying not to move.

"I'm _concentrating_, here," she warned, not wanting to be interrupted.

Shuyin groaned in defeat and fell back on the futon. For lack of something better to do, he picked up the garment grid Tidus had left there before his game in Luca. Tidus immediately gave him the knowledge he needed regarding use of the item and its purpose. Shuyin studied the armor spheres to see what kinds of weapons they held, then watched as Rikku finished melding the two sides of the cut flesh together into one long scar.

_Two halves of the same flesh mended together ..._ _Two halves of the same paper torn apart ... The old message can't be erased once its been written, ... right?_ Tidus wondered in Shuyin's thoughts.

Shuyin's eyes narrowed slightly on the new scar tissue and his head tilted with interest once he realized where Tidus with going with that hint. "That just might work," he muttered under his breath.

Rikku stepped back to admire her handiwork. "There you go. Good as new."

"Is Baralai here among you?" he asked.

"He's in Bevelle." Paine stretched, set an elbow on the edge of the bed behind Yuna's back, and rested her chin on a fist. "Nooj is here, though, … camping with the Youth League. Just don't expect him to give you a warm welcome if you've got your heart set on a reunion. In fact, if I were you, I'd hide until you have this little problem being stuck in Tidus's body solved."

"Nooj … Nooj would definitely be willing to do it," Shuyin told himself.

"Do what?" Paine asked, wary of anything he was planning.

Clasping the garment grid in his palm, still, he sat up and stood. "Do you happen to have any phoenix down?"

"Sure. Why?"

Shuyin moved to Yuna's bed, purposefully walking around to the other side to crouch eye-level and face her. "There may be another way to separate us. Please, ... have some phoenix down _immediately_ on hand. Bring it outside when you have it ready." Then, he turned and jogged down the stairs, leaving the cabin.

))((

Yuna lifted her head from her pillow and looked to Paine and Rikku with alarm. "But pheonix down is only used for …" Jumping off of the bed in haste, she raced down the stairs after him. "Shuyin! Shuyin, no!"

Because of Yuna's reaction, Rikku was worried, but Paine was already on her feet and headed down the stairs, too. "One other way? What other way?"

"He's going to try to die again!" Paine called back, jumping to the remaining stairs at the bottom and running after them. "Shuyin!"

"What? No! Wait! I just healed him! And he didn't even thank me!" Rikku cast the scissors at the futon and ran to catch up with the others.

))((

Outside of the airship, as the sun broadened its morning reach, Shuyin jogged across the sand toward the Youth League tents. "Nooj! Meyvn Nooj! You want retribution? Now's your chance!" He stopped in the middle of the camp and turned a full circle wondering which one he slept in. "Get your ass out here and fight me! Man-to-man this time! Flesh and blood!"

A few minutes later, the unhappy and stunned leader of the Youth League was crawling out of his tent to see who was bellowing his name this early in the morning. "Tidus?"

Shuyin turned around to face the direction of the meyvn's voice. "Fight me. You've been dying for this opportunity, so I expect you to take your best shot."

Nooj's unhappy frown turned into a deep scowl of hatred. He knew there could be only one reasonable explanation for this arrogant display. "Shuyin …" The spirit who once possessed him had somehow come back to life through Tidus. "So, … you finally surfaced and claimed him, didn't you?"

"Nope. He summoned me. Can you believe that?" Shuyin quieted as he approached his previous victim. "The little idiot needed help getting away from some thieves. He decided I was a risk worth taking."

Nooj took a cautious step back as Shuyin drew near. "Did you find Spira's sphere?"

Shuyin came to a stop and took note of the meyvn's small retreat. "No, but I set Meimo and Kyudou onto each other like a pair of rabid lupines for thinking they could order me around like a henchman."

Only one kind of dark magic could have accomplished that kind of insanity, and Nooj was all too familiar with it. "Considering you used the same tactics on me and my friends once, don't expect me to congratulate you."

The blitzball player folded his arms with a sarcastic sigh. "Now, that's gratitude for you. I was trying to be helpful this time."

"Shuyin! Stop!" Yuna caught up to him and clutched at the back of his damp shirt. "Don't do this," she begged. "Don't kill Tidus! Please, don't kill him!"

"Yuna, ..." Shuyin faced her and apologetically lifted her hand away from him. "This was his idea. He knows it's necessary. Tidus's body isn't like other bodies. He's made of spirit magic, but so am I. We kinda fused back together without meaning to. I have to try to cut myself free by weakening his physical bond, but I won't let him die. I promise. Do you have the phoenix down ready?"

"I ... I have a spell." Just when she thought she had no tears left, Yuna broke down into sobs again.

Paine gave Shuyin a wary glare, but put an arm around her friend to coax her away - to let him do what he had to do to put things right again.

Shuyin gave the warrior a nod of gratitude for her assistance. Then, he faced Nooj once more. "I need you to fight me, so she can have him back. So I can return to Lenne, … and rest."

"I don't fight unarmed, unarmored men." Nooj frowned severely at him and turned to enter his tent.

Shuyin switched the garment grid in his hand to guardian mode and drew Brotherhood from his sheath. Slipping in front of Nooj, he held the sword's magical edge against the meyvn's chest, barring him from entering the tent. Then, he switched off the grid and tossed it to the side where Yuna, Paine, and Rikku stood. "Meet you half-way, then. I'm armed now."

Hearing the commotion, Youth League members were roused from their sleep and came out to draw their weapons, ready to protect their leader from the hostile fiend.

"Don't shoot!" Paine cried out to them and ran back to Shuyin, stretching her arms and using her body to shield him. "He needs to be weakened, not killed! Put the guns down!"

The volunteers exchanged doubtful glances and reluctantly lowered their weapons. The Gullwings crew, also hearing the commotion, came outside about that time to see what was going on, so that now a small crowd had gathered around Shuyin and Nooj.

"Thank you," Shuyin quietly told Paine, surprised that she, of all people, would intervene on his behalf. No, he realized her offer of aid wasn't for his sake. Tidus had real friends here and a real life, whether his body was real or not. He had to find a way to give it back to him because he knew the pain of one moment was nothing compared to the pain of a lifetime of being separated from loved ones.

Paine gave a small nod, looked to Nooj, but then had to turn away from his accusing glare to rejoin Rikku and Yuna on the side of the gathered circle. She was a traitor in his eyes now.

When Paine was safely out of the way, Shuyin leveled a dark, penetrating stare at the Deathseeker. "Nooj, you're the only one here who's not afraid to fight me. If you don't come after me, then I'm coming after you."

"No matter how much I despise you, I'm not an murderous executioner." Nooj knocked the sword aside from his chest and walked around him to return to his tent.

"You nearly were. Remember?" Shuyin shaped his hand like a gun and fired a silent "bang" toward Paine, then gave Nooj a cold stare. "I could do it again, you know. I could make you turn on everyone here."

The gesture was too much for Nooj to bear. His machina hand crunched into Shuyin's jaw with enough force to knock him back a step.

"Ah!" Shuyin winced and touched the throbbing side of his face. "If my life had been different, you'd be owing me big for this, _little brother_," he muttered to himself.

Nooj grabbed him and punched him again, this time knocking him to the ground. His heart raced with hate and frustration from what he suffered at Shuyin's hands as he limped forward and stood over him, fuming. "I won't kill you, because I don't want to risk killing Tidus. But I won't hesitate to do whatever else it takes to keep you away from harming any more people."

Shuyin laughed as he wiped the blood from his jaw and nose. "You're gonna have to do better than that, then. If you can't finish me off, I might have to make someone else do it. Who should I take next, Nooj? You again? Your friends? Maybe instead of bringing Tidus to Yuna, I should take Yuna to him. If I take Yuna to the Farplane with me, no one has to bother about Tidus."

"You don't even deserve to be sent back to the Farplane! You should be the one in the Via Infinito instead of Spira!" Nooj returned.

Shuyin was quiet for a moment, calculating what he knew about Nooj's strengths and weaknesses from having possessed him for two whole years. Suddenly, kicking up to his feet, he swung Brotherhood toward Nooj's head. The half-machina man, raised his cyber arm to block the threat. Casting Brotherhood aside, Shuyin grabbed and wrestled Nooj to the ground like a common bar room brawler. The two men grappled, rolling in the dirt and rocks taking punishing hits from each other, until they both began to wear each other down. The gathering around them watched with restrained nervousness.

Finally, Shuyin lost patience and cast his dark spell. Nooj gave an anguished yell at the intense emotion that swelled inside of him driving him to temporary madness. He tore away from Shuyin's grip, reached for his gun, and fired - not once, but four times - as if each bullet had a special name attached to it for the lives he tried, but failed, to destroy.

Four times pain pierced Shuyin's chest, shoulder, and abdomen. Breathing no longer came easily, and a cold sweat enveloped him as he dropped to his knees. Steadying himself enough to sit back on a heel, he withdrew his dark magic from Nooj's mind and chuckled. "Told you ... I could make you ... do it again," he rasped.

Wide-eyed and shaken from the experience, Nooj dropped his gun and fell back against a rock.

Yuna ran to Shuyin and knelt beside him, cradling him in her arms.

"Do you ... have the phoenix down?" He was losing his struggle to breathe. "Once I release him, ... it will be up to you."

She sniffled and nodded, trying not to cry.

Shuyin closed his eyes. The illusionary body was dying, so while it struggled to maintain life, he pulled away as an unsent apparition once more. "Don't let him die to this world, Yuna. He might not be able to come back again."

Quickly drawing the Abes shirt up and away from the close-range bullet wounds, Yuna set her hands over them and whispered her white magic before Tidus could completely slip away. Clusters of light surrounded her, drawing energy away from her to transfer and transform it into the life-threatening holes that had penetrated his torso, all four of them at once. The intense, life-preserving spell lingered for a long moment as it continued to repair all the damage. But as it faded, she held her breath to see if it had been enough. When Tidus half-opened his eyes to acknowledge her nearness, she hugged his neck and let her tears flow freely once more.

Shuyin gave them a moment before approaching again. "I think I need a little help returning this time. It was too close to being real again. But he shouldn't be here for the next part," he reminded them.

"I'll wait for you inside," Tidus spoke to Yuna in agreement, touching her cheek, fully aware of what had been happening.

"Mh," Yuna sadly agreed, giving him another hug and a kiss to welcome him back.

With her help, Tidus stood and turned to face Shuyin. Glancing down at himself, alone in his own body once more, he noticed how dirty and bloodstained he was, but he didn't quite know what to say. "Thanks," he weakly offered. "And ... sorry about the shirt."

Shuyin smirked. "You know what? I've changed my mind. It's all yours."

Tidus smiled at his response, but then looked toward Nooj. The meyvn looked like he was still experiencing something that words couldn't begin to justify. Tidus started to try to say something in apology to him, too, but he merely nodded his gratitude for the man's part in setting him free, however harrowing it had been for him.

"Rikku." Yuna looked to her cousin and sniffled. "Could you please go with Tidus? Let me know immediately if he starts to fade, so I can stop in time."

Rikku nodded, waved to Shuyin, and then allowed Tidus to use her shoulder for support. "Welcome back for real this time," she told him as they walked back to the airship together.

Yuna watched them go and waited until Tidus was absolutely out of sight and safe inside. Then, she stood before Shuyin. "I'm ... I'm sorry about the things I said. I do see it now. See him in you, ... I mean." She paused, rose on her toes, and gave his translucent cheek a kiss. "Thank you, for helping him find his way back. And, please, tell Lenne that I'm sorry. I ... didn't understand." She wanted to apologize for feeling jealous, too, but that would mean having to admit it.

Shuyin smiled and nodded that he would.

Yuna drew her breath and summoned her Nirvana staff. She hesitated a moment because now that she wasn't angry at him, she was a little sad to have to send him. But, slowly, she began her spirit dance, until Shuyin faded and she was left in the center of a sparkling mist of pyreflies.

The Youth League members silently returned to their tents, but they would be discussing what happened for a long time afterward. Paine helped Nooj back toward his tent and offered to bring him anything from the airship that might make him feel like himself again. He only wanted a good, stiff drink and to be left alone for a bit, ... to recover. The rest of the Gullwings looked to Yuna, concerned for her, but knew to leave her to her thoughts for a while before asking her about what led to Shuyin's return and this brawl with the Youth League's meyvn.

Only after everyone else had gone back inside for breakfast did Yuna look to the Zanarkand ruins and feel at peace once more. Tidus was home. When she returned to the airship, she went straight to his futon to find him already sleeping off his fatigue.

"Sssh," Rikku whispered, putting a finger to her lips and grinning. "He went right out as soon as his head hit the pillow. Want me to bring you something from the kitchen?"

"No, thank you."

Rikku smiled and tip-toed down the stairs to tell everyone else congregating at the bar to be quiet so Tidus could catch up on some sleep.

Yuna climbed onto the futon and lay down beside him. She watched him sleep for a long moment, as if studying every detail of his face to be sure it was really him. Then, she kissed his cheek and took his hand in hers. She wasn't sure this was the end of his ordeal, but she was content to put her questions on hold and let him rest for now.


	25. Chapter 25: Harvest

Chapter 25: Harvest

Tidus slept long and hard, but when he finally woke and stretched, the three women he shared the loft with instantly stopped chatting on their beds and watched him with concern. Their attention was so intense that he wondered what was wrong. Scratching his head, he looked down at the old long-sleeved Abes shirt. Okay, so it wasn't in the best condition with the holes, blood stains, and sea muck, but at least it was dry now. He patted his chest to make sure he hadn't half-faded or something and then hesitantly looked behind him wondering if something else was there. "What are you staring at?" he finally asked, sleepy but suspicious.

Rikku giggled. "You, silly. We were beginning to think you were going to sleep all day."

"How do you feel?" Yuna stood and went to her dresser to retrieve his necklace and earring.

"Tired, but okay, … I guess."

Paine brought Brotherhood to the futon, standing it carefully against the side of the frame. "You left this outside."

"This too." Rikku followed, placing his discarded sphere grid near it. She leaned forward, hands on her knees, studying his face up-close to make sure it was him.

"Stop staring at him like that. It's him." Paine smacked Rikku's fluffy ponytail and used it to pull her back a step.

Tidus accepted the grid with an amused smile and slowly, carefully sat up. He rubbed a thumb over the sphere that would change him into his guardian mode. Then, standing with unusual stiffness, he replaced Brotherhood in its sheath.

"Are you sore?" Yuna asked, bringing his jewelry back to him. "I can use some more cure spells for the minor injuries."

"Nah, ... I'll be okay. Right now I just kinda feel like I was stampeded by a herd of chimeras."

"Welcome back." Rikku reached to hug his neck. "We were all really worried about you."

"Thanks." He returned the hug, and then lifted his eyes to Paine and met her sad gaze. What could he say to her for his behavior under Shuyin's influence? She already carried so many scars because of the renegade spirit. "I am ... so sorry."

"He did what he had to do to bring you back." She surprised him by reaching to give him a hug as well. "I'm just glad to have you back to being _yourself_." Then, she looked to Rikku and gave her a subtle tap, to indicate that they should allow Yuna and Tidus some time alone. Rikku nodded and followed the warrior down the stairs to go to the bridge.

Tidus snorted in light amusement. "Now, why can't they do that when I actually _want_ some privacy?"

Yuna smiled at his attempt to make a joke, in spite of his discomfort. His countenance still betrayed his weariness, and she hated to bring it up, but there was no point in putting off the inevitable question. "_Are_ you ... still _you_?"

He wanted to say "yes", but he knew there was no turning back from what had happened. "I know things now that I didn't before. Memories … I guess I have to admit that I'm a little of both of us now."

She tried not to seem disappointed to hear that and gave him a hopeful smile. "Well, you're back, and that's what matters."

He saw her worry through her smile, though. Facing her in the same manner of their reunion on the beach of Besaid, he placed his hands on her arms and anxiously searched her eyes for signs of disapproval or disgust. "Am I still … okay?" he cautiously asked.

The question cut Yuna like a knife. "You're perfect," she whispered and raised a hand to his cheek. "I never meant to hurt you when I was telling Shuyin he wasn't good enough. I'm so sorry."

Tidus closed his eyes in relief and encircled his arms about her waist to rest his head on her shoulder. "I know you don't like him, but I can't really make him go away because ... "

"Because he is a part of you." Yuna rested her ear against him. "Wakka and Nooj were right. I guess I was in denial because I was afraid of how he might change you. But I think I understand him better now."

"At least I can summon him, if I need his magic." Tidus was proud of discovering that ability somehow, though he knew he probably shouldn't be. He pulled her closer to himself to hold her tighter and stubbornly held on as he rested his cheek against her. "But, it will probably always put me at risk to take him on so we can use it."

"Don't you dare use his magic again," she immediately scolded. Then, she paused and considered that Shuyin had probably saved his life this time. "But, ... I guess if you have to, I will always have my cure spells ready," she reluctantly promised.

Tidus smiled at her mixed reaction. "Life or death last resort, okay?" He couldn't blame her for feeling that way. It had been a scary experience.

"Okay." Yuna sighed to herself. "Can, ... I ask you something else?"

"Anything," he quietly agreed.

"There is one thing that still puzzles me. Shuyin said Tidus was his nickname, but he didn't say why. Now that you have some of his memories ..."

Tidus laughed lightly with some embarrassment. "It's … a really stupid story."

"I'd like to hear it." She smiled with hope. "I thought it was your real name."

"Well, it is - for _me_, anyway." He drew away from her. "I'd like for you to come with me somewhere. There's something I can show you that will help explain it - if it's still there."

She quirked a curious brow wondering what new mystery he had to share with her.

))((

Later that day, Tidus took Yuna out for a long swim around the sunken ruins. "This was sector A-East. It's where I used to live. I can remember things like this now. That down there was a theater. And just behind it was a book store." He swam a little further, and Yuna followed. "This was my school, and that building beside of it ... That's the library." He swam toward it until he was treading water above it.

Yuna drew in a breath of excitement as she swam around the top dome of the ancient library trying to see through the water to the crumbled building below. "This is the original Zanarkand library? Do you think it has spheres in it?"

"Jackpot spheres! There's spheres on the Founders and Earth and everything. Not sure how many survived the explosions and collapse, but this is where we need to do some serious digging, if you want to fill the new library."

Yuna laughed with delight, but then looked at him and grinned so big that she nearly grew dimples the size of Rikku's. "When I asked you to show me your Zanarkand some day, this isn't quite what I had in mind."

He laughed with her at the memory of his promise. "Well, it's not exactly what I had in mind either. But there is _one_ more place I want to show you." He turned and swam further out over the sunken city. Along the way, he rolled onto his back in the water to look behind him and see if she was keeping up. Diving underneath the surface, he quickly swam beneath her and grabbed her ankle as a prank to prevent her from catching up to where he had disappeared. When, she dove under to try to pry her foot free, he darted away with a backwards somersault, but then he opened his arms with a grin and waved for her to catch up before surfacing again.

Yuna broke the surface again to find him chuckling at her.

"Come on, poky. It'll take us all day to get there at the rate you're moving."

Normally, she would have fussed at him for going too fast and playing around too much. But no matter what he had lost and gained from the experience, this dolphin-like behavior was only further indication that it really was him. She was too happy about that to complain, so she giggled and splashed a large spray of water in his face instead.

He squinted at his punishment, but then blinked the water away with a grin. "Okay, we're going to have to go deep for this next one. So if you can't hold your breath, use your air supply. I'll try not to go so fast, but you have to keep up with me. There's a lot of wreckage, and it would be easy to get lost or trapped in it. But I think I remember how to get down there." Having said that, he drew a breath, and dove under the surface to lead the way down into the depths.

Yuna decided to trust the blitzball skills she had practiced so hard for, choosing to conserve her air pack on her back for emergency. She followed him around the large ghostly ruins shrouded in flickering rays of sunlight until they came to the maze of collapsed piers that had trapped the sunken houseboat. She swam with him through the broken window into the living room, where she was astonished to see a trunk full of spheres scattered across the area. Some of them had been crushed, but most of them looked whole.

Tidus looked over his shoulder to see how she was handling the depth and pressure so far, then he grinned at her and took her hand to lead her into his room. Once there, he pointed to the keyboard, then released her hand and opened his arms with a dramatic swirl.

Yuna understood instantly. This had been his home. She looked around in awe at the horrible wreckage, so glad he had not been caught in it when it happened. She ran her fingers over the keyboard and accidentally knocked over the holograph of Lenne. It hurt a bit to see it, but when she reached to pick it up, he swam behind her, plucked it from her fingers, and tossed it behind him to give her a kiss. She started to laugh and indicated she needed her air tank now.

Tidus shook his head at her lack of iron lungs and directed her attention to the Abe's portrait. Then, passing it into her hands, he swam to one of the piles of debris and dug through it briefly to find a couple of spheres he had remembered using prior to the attack. He passed those to her as well. Then, he took one last look at the bedroom and swam back into the living room to begin collecting the spheres that could be salvaged from the floor.

Yuna followed and helped him collect as many as they could fit back into the trunk. When she spotted one near a large, broken piece of furniture that might have been a sofa, she lifted up the corner and reached for it, only to drop it again in shock when a pale, white hand fell on top of hers. Yuna came as close to a scream as one could manage under water while plugged into artificial air. Kyudou's open, bulging eyes stared lifelessly back at her from under the wreckage of his fight with Meimo.

Tidus heard and saw her sudden reaction, quirked a brow of curiosity, and swam to her side to see the gruesome discovery for himself. Picking up the sphere she had dropped, he protectively ushered her away from the sight and placed the item into the trunk. Lifting the handle on one side, he indicated he was ready to go.

Yuna lifted the other handle and together they transported the ancient spheres out of the houseboat toward the surface. Then, they struggled to take it back to shore.

"Find anything good?" Rikku called, seeing them burdened with a heavy trunk, as she ran to greet them at the water's edge.

Once they were at her side, they set down the old chest with a thud. It immediately fell apart, spilling its contents as if it were a harvest of large clams.

Rikku gasped and jumped up and down in glee as Yuna and Tidus fought to catch their breath. "Wow! Oh, wow! Wow! You found a whole bunch of them! Where did you find them?"

"My home," he proudly informed her. "And there's probably a lot more down under the library. I remember where it is now."

"You never told me your home was a houseboat," Yuna commented, after removing her air tank.

"A houseboat?" Rikku picked up one of the spheres and polished it with her sleeve. "Under the water? We would have never found that. Guess it's a good thing Shuyin came to help you out after all."

"And look!" Yuna showed Rikku the holographic portrait of the blitzball team. "The Zanarkand Abes! All of them!"

"Guess we'd better pop some popcorn, huh? We've got a lot of spheres to watch tonight!" Rikku grinned.

Tidus winced at that idea and took his sphere back from her. "No offense, Rikku, but ... I'd like to watch them first and decide which ones to share. These aren't some stranger's memories this time, ... they're mine."

"Okay!" Rikku nodded with a smile, still excited about the discovery. "I'll go get something better to carry them in, then." She ran back to the airship.

))((

Tidus straightened to stretch his sore arms while he waited, when he spotted Nooj heading their way. "Kyaaaah," he complained with a wince. "I don't want to talk to him. He's going to knock me from here to Besaid after what happened this morning."

Yuna's brows rose, partially in sympathy and partially in amusement at his completely different reaction from Shuyin about his last meeting with Nooj.

Nooj approached with his familiar limp, though he moved a little more slowly than normal, too. He nodded to Yuna, ignored Tidus, and turned his attention to the collection of spilled spheres at their feet. "Looks like the fish are really biting."

Tidus lowered his gaze, not sure what to say to the man. He still ached all over and carried numerous bruises from their unfortunate encounter, including the one on his jaw, but he chose to let the minor wounds heal naturally, figuring he deserved some minor discomfort compared to what Shuyin had done to the meyvn.

"They're Tidus's spheres recovered from his home," Yuna proudly informed Nooj. "He remembers where the Zanarkand library used to be now and says there should be lots more spheres there. Oh, and ... we found Kyudou's body. He's quite dead now, so I don't think we have to worry about the Echo Alliance any more."

"What about Meimo's body?" Nooj asked her.

Her brows drew together, and she looked to Tidus in question. He shook his head and shrugged, so she shook her head, too.

"No unusually big fiends? Nothing? That's not good." Nooj looked back out to sea. "Meimo is the one with teleportation skills, so that means he could have escaped. And now we really have no idea where to find him, if he did. I'd better go warn Baralai."

"Do you want me to be the one to explain what happened?" Tidus knew that he could do a better job explaining the ordeal with Shuyin, even if it did mean having to tell Baralai that he was now able to summon the same spirit that had possessed him.

"That might be best." Nooj paused for a minute. "Are you as sore as I am?"

Tidus looked up in surprise, but then snorted. "Half of your body is made of built-in armor. I haven't hurt this bad since my first-ever blitzball training camp." He held up a fist to compare his flesh and bone hand to Nooj's machina parts.

"Yeah, but you only _think_ you feel pain, so that doesn't count." Nooj allowed himself a reluctant smile. "I _strongly suggest_ that you don't lay into me like that again. Truce?" He offered his hand.

Tidus accepted the handshake with mild surprise. "Truce."

Rikku came running back with a laundry basket and set it down in front of the spilled spheres. As she and Yuna began to transfer the spheres into the basket, Rikku paused over one of them and started to touch the activation button.

Tidus took it away from her and looked to Nooj. "Ah. I'll be along in a minute to talk to Baralai." When Nooj nodded and walked away without him, Tidus looked back to Rikku to find she already had another sphere and was searching for the button to activate it. "Cut it out!" He grabbed it from her. "I told you I wanted to preview them first. There's private stuff in there."

"Oooh. You mean like embarrassing stuff?" She grinned.

"Stuff I shouldn't _have_ to show you. I don't read your diary, do I?"

"I don't keep a diary."

"What-_ever_! I don't go through your personal stuff, so don't go through mine."

Rikku leaned toward Yuna as they helped him collect the spheres into the basket. "He probably just doesn't want us to see any naked baby pictures."

"Shut up," Tidus retorted with a chuckle and threw a piece of seaweed from the trunk at her. "Just help me get them inside without breaking them, okay?"

))((

The next morning, Tidus rapped a knuckle against the door frame of Wakka's small hut and peered between the breezy curtains to call for him.

Wakka had been lying on the floor trying to keep cool in the summer heat when he heard the familiar voice. Immediately rolling over and pulling himself to his feet, the large man reached for the curtain and jerked it open. "You're back! How'd you come back? Why didn't you tell someone you were back?"

"That's ... what I'm doing right now," Tidus answered before he was crushed in a overly strong hug. He was used to Wakka's rag-doll handling of him, but he was more sore than usual this time. When he was released, he made a pained face and put a hand to his abdomen and chest, only to be pulled into another hug by Lulu. Fortunately, Lulu's hug was much more gentle.

"Welcome back - again." She warmly smiled at him as she drew back in disbelief. "What happened? We thought you were gone for sure this time."

"It was a teleportation spell." Tidus proceeded to explain as much as he could about what had happened after he and Wakka were separated before the game.

"Wow. You've been through a lot, ya? The game was called after that because of the mob situation," Wakka informed him. "They might reschedule it, but the officials are going to want to talk to you if they see that you're back."

"Think they'll still let me play?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, but if they still think you're unsent ..."

"Yeah, I know." Tidus sighed heavily. "Hey, I got a favor to ask of you guys." He stepped back outside of the tent and came in carrying the laundry basket full of spheres.

"What's that? Don't tell me you're moving in with us. Living with three women finally drove you crazy, ya?" He chuckled, but then caught Lulu quirking a brow at him. "Ah, not that living with the one, special woman of your dreams would ever cause a man to go insane."

Lulu, folded her arms at her chest and gave him a small smirk for his effort to correct himself. Then, she returned to the bed where she had been changing Vidina.

"They hog the shower, stick their noses into my business, and steal the food right off my plate." Tidus answered his question anyway. "Rikku never shuts up, and Paine is always kicking my butt just to prove she can. And they leave lacy-stringy things hanging around that I really don't need to see, if you know what I mean."

Wakka chuckled at Tidus's complaints and accepted Vidina from Lulu, propping the baby over his shoulder while she cleaned up the baby supplies. "What about Yuna?"

"She steals my blanket and worries too much about her hair."

"Why don't you move out?"

"Because … everyone's become sort of like a family, you know? Like all of us when we were traveling together before. It's warped, but it works for me because I never had that kind of thing until I came here."

"Well, don't look at us to start doing your laundry." Lulu gave him a cool warning as she looked at the basket.

"Oh, it's not laundry." He set the basket down and pulled the protective blanket back to show them the memory spheres.

"Suuuuwaaaa." Wakka crouched in admiration for a better look. "That many? Where'd you get all these?"

"They're mine. I found my old home in Zanarkand, and I'd like to review them. But, ... I don't really have a good place to do that in private on the airship."

Wakka chuckled deeply. "You don't want the girls seeing _nekkid_ baby things, ya?"

"Would you people stop saying that? Maybe I just have stuff I don't want everyone to see, okay?"

"Like _nekkid_ baby things." Wakka persisted in his teasing.

Tidus rolled his eyes.

"Here, hold this." Wakka deposited Vidina into Tidus's hands and pulled Lulu aside to speak with her in a hushed, private tone for a minute.

Tidus blinked at the baby boy held at arm's length. "Uh ... Wakka, ..." Whatever they were talking about, they both seemed in agreement on it.

When they were done whispering, the larger man approached Tidus again. "Okay. You can use our place to watch your spheres in private. Just keep an eye on Vidina for us for a few minutes while we go check something out, okay? We'll come back for him, and then we'll spend the rest of the day in Luca, so you can have as much time as you need."

"But ... I don't know anything about babies. What do I do if he cries? I can't feed him or anything. I don't have -"

"We're well aware of what you don't have." Lulu placed her hand on her hip and gave him a flat stare. "Just sit with him, okay? It will only be for a few minutes."

Wakka held the curtain open for Lulu to leave the hut, then he paused and returned to Tidus, lowering his voice. "Hey, uh, about those women issues … If you ever need, you know, older brotherly advice -"

"No!" Tidus quickly answered and vehemently shook his head. "I've already had that lecture three times!"

"Three?"

"My old man, Auron, and Cid."

"Cid!" Wakka laughed out loud. "Okay, well, … I'm here for you, all right?" He gave him a slap on the back. "Neither of us have fathers, so we gotta look out for each other." He grinned and headed out of the tent behind Lulu.

Tidus sighed, relieved to have escaped a fourth lecture on girls. "Looks like it's just you and me, kid." He sat down cross-legged on the floor and set the baby in his lap, then reached to the basket for a sphere. "No dirtying diapers while I'm in charge around here, okay?"

Vidina cooed in response and grabbed the sphere into his mouth.

"Uwaaa ..." Tidus made a face. "Don't slobber my spheres. So gross ... No drooling either. That's very uncool. No girl is ever going to want to kiss you, until you learn to control that." He drew the sphere away from the baby's grasp, and considered the number of women that snuggled, hugged, and kissed the baby when he was around. "Though on second thought, maybe you have the right idea."

Vidina reached for the sphere and began to get cranky about being denied the interesting new object. His crankiness easily turned into a cry.

"Aw, man. No crying either. See, I told them you would cry!" He looked around the room for something that might pacify the baby, but then gave up and held the sphere in front of him again. "Look! Ssshh. Watch what it does." He pulled Vidina into a semi-sitting position and touched the activation button. It was a sphere of Jecht practicing his notorious shot in the ocean with some of his teammates. Tidus stared at the man with mixed emotions for a moment. He was just as he remembered him - loud, crass, and obnoxious. But, in all fairness, he knew things now he didn't know then. As the baby continued to wail above the recorded sound, Tidus turned off the sphere and lifted the baby to his shoulder. "You know what? You just go ahead and cry, little man, all right? I can't blame you for being ticked off at them for leaving you with me."


	26. Chapter 26: Mixed Messages

Chapter 26: Mixed Messages

Later that afternoon, when Wakka took his family to Luca for the day, Tidus finished viewing all of his spheres. After sorting them into piles, he returned to the airship for some small containers to take back to Wakka's hut with him. While there, he asked Yuna to help him pack them, and she was more than happy to follow along.

"Okay, these are the ones that will never see the light of day again." He dumped them into a trash sack, not caring if they cracked and spilled their precious memory fluid.

Yuna gasped as if he had cracked some golden eggs. "You mean there's _nothing_ useful in them?"

"Nothing that I can't live without." He drew the next pile to himself. "These are the ones that we can let everyone else see. Some of my old man's best games are in here. Some of my games are in here, and there's also a bunch of various festival events and com cast programs in here - everything from news to movies. We can donate them to the library when we're done."

"All that? I can hardly wait to see them!" Yuna helped him place them carefully in a small chest. "Why is this one marked?" she asked holding up one that he had flagged with a scrap of tape.

"That one goes to Kimahri. It has a scene with the original library in it, inside and out. It's not much, but I remember enough now that I can probably tell him more about what he needs to know."

Tidus pushed the chest aside and drew a third pile to himself. This pile was smaller, and he paused over them a moment before explaining them. "These are the personal ones. I'm keeping these. But you can have these two, ... if you want them. If you don't, then this one can go to the library, and the other can go ... in the trash."

Yuna tilted her chin in curiosity, both at his hesitant tone and the fact that he was offering them to her.

"Watch this one first." He smiled and offered the one in his right hand.

Yuna touched the activation button for the one that he recommended and drew a breath of suprise as soon as it started playing. "Lenne in concert?"

"You wanted a music sphere from a time when Zanarkand could enjoy things like concerts. This is Lenne, but I'm sure the library has others, too. You can use it for your concert and then donate it, if you want."

"It's perfect." She smiled and turned it off. "Thank you, so much." She gave his neck a hug and planted a kiss on his cheek.

Tidus gave her a small, uncertain smile. "Well, ... don't thank me yet. You might not be so happy about it after you see the other one."

Yuna gave him a doubtful expression, accepted the sphere from his left hand, and hesitantly activated it.

_Shuyin and Lenne sat shoulder-to-shoulder at the keyboard in his room, and she was kissing his ear as he was trying to play a song._

_"Cut it out." He tucked his ear to his shoulder and tried to avoid laughing at the ticklish sensation. "I'm trying to concentrate, you know."_

_Soft, feminine chuckles ... "Okay. I'll behave."_

_He was slightly nervous, but he played through the haunting melody that he had penned himself and committed to memory. Every note had to be just right, ... no mistakes._

_"Wow, that's really good. No, it's more than good - it's beautiful." She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned against him with a contented sigh as he continued to play the song. "Can I have it?"_

_He chuckled at the request. "No. You already have enough songs. This one's mine."_

_"But you'll never play it for anyone else. You're too shy. And then it will be wasted, just like all those years of piano lessons."_

_"Hey, those lessons weren't my idea. If my mom had her way, I'd be playing at classical concert halls instead of blizting in stadiums. I'm just trying to salvage something useful from all those hours of banging my head more often than my fingers on the keyboard."_

_"Well, I think you should be proud of how well you play. You should share it with more people more often. You've got a real talent. But, I guess it's also kinda nice to see you shy about something, ... for once." She grinned at him._

_He cut her a humored side glance without pausing the song. "What's that supposed to mean?"_

_She laughed lightly. "Let's just say sometimes it's hard to accuse you of being humble and insecure. So, what did you name it?"_

_"I haven't named it yet. Guess I'll name it when I feel inspired."_

_"And then you'll let me have it and I can add lyrics and sing it at my concert."_

_He laughed. "No."_

_"Please?" She leaned over him and kissed his ear once more._

_He tilted his ear toward his shoulder again and chuckled at her bribery. "No."_

_"Please ...," she repeated with a grin, leaning in front of him to kiss his lips instead._

_"Nh-nh," he denied one more time. As the kiss lingered, his hand reached blindly for the memory sphere, groping to turn it off. The sphere slipped from the back of the keyboard and wedged itself next to the wall at a precarious tilt. "Damn," he muttered. "Why do I always do that?" Then, it hit the floor and it blinked off._

Yuna stared at the memory sphere at if it were still playing.

Tidus cautiously leaned around her to try to read her expression.

"You ... remember being with her, ... don't you?" she hesitantly asked.

"Yeah," he admitted, feeling somewhat guilty about it. "But I knew how much you liked the song, so when I remembered it was in a sphere, I just thought I'd ... check to see if you wanted it before I trashed it. A thousand years later, and I still don't have a clue what to call it. That's why I couldn't remember the title. That's why you'll never find any spheres of it, except this one."

Yuna knew that he had showed this to her to be honest, not insulting, but it was still difficult to watch. "I'm normally not a jealous person, but ... I'm having a hard time with this," she confessed. "Her picture was in a locker with _your _name on it. Her picture was on a keyboard _you_ remembered playing, and _you_ wrote that song for her. And now, you remember being close with her - though, I really don't want to know _how_ close," she quickly added. "It's just that, ... Lenne was supposed to have been with Shuyin, not _you_." Yuna considered her feelings and tried to reason with herself about them. "I know that she's long gone, and I know you're not exactly the same person as him, but ..." She wiped the corner of her eye, refusing to give in to tears over such a pointless feeling.

Tidus let her talk until she had said everything that she felt like she needed to say. Then, after a moment of uncertainty, he said the only thing he could think of in response. "The song wasn't written for her." It was a weak offering at a moment like this, but he wanted to make sure she understood that. As she looked up at him in surprise, he shrugged. "It wasn't written for anyone, ... except maybe me. It's just something I heard in my head, and I wanted to see if I could make a real song out of it."

"Will you ... always think of her when you play it?"

"Not always. In fact, probably not much, now." Shuyin's little analogy to the lemon juiced paper came to Tidus's mind. "I have new messages written over the old ones."

She had no idea what he meant by that.

"I didn't want to play the song for you earlier because ... I was afraid it would bring back old feelings for her, or that I might lose myself in him. Now, I realize I have memories he can never have because I really have become a different person. My new life makes the old one pale by comparison."

Her brows rose with worry. "Tell me I'm being silly, then."

He smiled lightly. "You're being silly. Besides, I knew you before I remembered her." He paused and made a face at his own logic. "That didn't make sense, did it?"

Yuna smiled. "It makes wonderful sense." She leaned forward and kissed him. "Can I have it?"

"The sphere?"

"The song."

He acted offended. "You want me to give you my song? _My_ song that I worked so hard on and managed to keep to myself for a thousand years? The _only_ song I have? I didn't give it to her. What makes you think I'll give it to you. I can't just give away something like that." But when he was able to make her laugh about it, he easily shrugged. "Yeah, okay, you can have it."

"Can I call it my song?"

"I suppose."

"Will you play it for me whenever I want to hear it?"

"Well, if it's your song then technically _you_ should play it."

"I don't know how."

He gave a light laugh. "Well, then you have a problem, don't you?"

She smiled at his teasing. "What if I call it 'Tidus's Song'? Then, you have to play it for me."

"No, because then it's my song and I can do whatever I want with it again."

Yuna laughed and gave him a light elbow in the ribs for being purposefully contrary. Then, she looked back down at the sphere in her hands and gave a contented sigh. "Well, I think you should keep this. It will probably never be one of my favorites, but it's a good memory for you. And, you shouldn't pretend your past never happened. It's part of who you are. Besides, I didn't realize until I was given the sphere of your sending that the only sphere I have of you is the one you left behind before we fought Sin."

Tidus's eyes widened slightly and he scratched his head lightly in embarrassment. "Oh, that ... I kinda forgot all about that one. I guess I should throw that one into the sea, too, huh?"

"No. No, I treasure it. But, I guess I get so caught up in hunting the past that I keep forgetting to record the present. Would you let me make my own memory sphere of you playing that song? Please?" She gave him her best big-eyed kitten face.

He cringed at the idea of playing for a sphere because it was like playing in front of an audience, but then he considered how civil she was being to not throw it at him. "Okay, one sphere - but no concerts," he agreed, sighing in dramatic defeat.

"No concerts." Yuna gave the song sphere back to him, happy with the outcome in spite of it. Then, she noticed the other spheres in his personal stash. "Are all of these Shuyin and Lenne?"

"Nah, the others are personal to me because of the other people in them - my mom, the Abes, or other friends. I thought I made some of Auron and me, but I guess that part of what I remember wasn't real. Not until I came out of the dream, at least. I would have liked to have kept at least one sphere of him." He saddened slightly.

"I still have the ones of him with my father," she offered in consolation. "And those spheres have our fathers together with him."

He was happy to hear that. It somehow made things feel complete. "Anyway, this sphere is the one that will explain where my name came from." He set another sphere in front of her, but then pointed a finger at her in warning. "No laughing, okay? I mean it. I wouldn't be caught dead showing this to anyone, if you hadn't asked about it."

Yuna grinned expectantly and touched the activation button.

_The sun shone brightly above the beach's rolling, white-capped waves. A blitzball rolled across the shore in the sphere's field of view. The wind pushed it toward the sand, only for the tide to pull it back out toward the sea. A child's laughter could be heard, and within seconds a very young boy with sun-bronzed skin and scruffy, sun-streaked hair ran into view after the ball. "Watch this trick, Mama! Watch this trick!" He grabbed the ball from the water with both hands and attempted to hold the bulky thing to his tummy in one hand, while he hitched his somewhat-too-big shorts back up to his tan line with the other._

Yuna covered her mouth with both hands and tried not to laugh.

Tidus rested his arms on his knees, then buried his head into them with a groan, already regretting letting her see this.

_"I'm watching," a woman off-screen assured the little tyke. "Going to do a trick shot?"_

_"What trick?" a man's gruff voice asked with a hint of sarcastic amusement. "It's the same kick every time, and most of the time he misses the ball."_

_The woman chuckled. "He's just trying to be like you, you know."_

_"That may be, but he took after your side of the family. He's a natural-born klutz."_

_"He's three. All three-year olds are klutzes."_

_The boy set down the ball to place his hands on his hips, as he faced his parents and scolded them. "Are you even watching me?" _

_His mother giggled at his seriousness. "I'm sorry, Shu. We're watching. Go ahead."_

_The ambitious tyke bent to pick up the ball again. "I'm going to do Jecht shot!"_

_"Which one?" The man out of view played along._

_The boy looked at his fingers and held up two. "Four," he announced._

_The man off-screen could be heard snickering. "There is no four!" he fussed back to the boy._

_"Two." The boy corrected himself, holding up the same two fingers again._

_The man chuckled. "There is no two!" The young child looked utterly confused about how this numbering system worked, and the expression on his face made the man laugh even harder._

Yuna's snickers turned into a snort as she fell sideways to the floor, laughing.

Tidus shook his head at his own humiliation, but resisted the urge to turn it off.

_"Never mind, boy! Just do the kick! Remember, high into the sky!"_

_"High into the sky!" The mop-haired little guy gave up trying to figure out his father's logic and ran back toward the water. He tossed the ball into the air as high as he could, but then was momentarily blinded by the sun. The ball came back down on top of him and he used his arms to cover his head. "The sun's in my eyes," he complained._

_"Oh for the love of ... Uncover that head and send the ball up there to meet it!" his dad coached from the sidelines. "Come on, now! Sky high!"_

_"Sky high!" The persistent little waif reached for his ball once more and turned his back to the sun and the ocean this time. He tossed it into the air again and watched it come down, then scrunched up his face and hopped up to meet it. "Tidaaa!" he proudly called out as he did a rather impressive volley with his head to keep it aloft. "Tidaaa!" he called out as he did another and tried hard to bump it higher. "Tii-daaaa!" His third volley was followed by an attempt to kick up into a spin to make the notorious shot like his father, but as his feet left the ground, a large wave slammed into his small body from behind. The ball was sloshed forward toward the shore, but the boy was dragged under and pulled out to sea._

_"Oh my god!" His mother panicked, almost dropping the sphere. "Jecht!"_

_Jecht was already in the ocean, snatching the boy out of the powerful undertow. A few minutes later, he brought his son back and deposited him on the sand, safely out of the tide's reach. The boy coughed up the excess water he'd inhaled and clung to his dad's shorts. He was shaking with fear and started to cry because of the horrible fright of almost drowning. "One too many 'tidaas' there kiddo!" Jecht laughed. The blitzball pro then looked to the woman holding the sphere and recounted the incident with a humorous gesture. "Tidaaa! Slam! Flattened by a knee-deep tidal wave!" He laughed again. "See! Your side of the family!" he pointed to his wife._

_Upset that his dad had laughed at his misfortune, the boy ran to his mother._

_"It's okay, baby. It's okay." She comforted him with a kiss to his forehead and sighed with relief that he was safe. "Jecht, he could have drowned," she lightly scolded her husband for his teasing._

_Jecht continued to chuckle. "Oh, stop coddling him. He's all right. Just got some water up his nose. He'll be a mini-tidal wave himself one of these days. He'll own the whole damn sphere pool if he ever figures out that shot instead of crying about it."_

_The boy's small face turned away from his father directly toward the memory sphere at his mother's side. As his azure eyes blinked at the sphere, he sniffled and coughed some more._

_"King Tidus of the blitzball arena, right? King Tidus of the waves," Jecht added with another laugh, as his strong hand settled on the small boy's head and scruffed his wet hair even more._

_His mother put a sympathetic hand to his head to smooth the wild hair back into place. "It didn't feel very funny, did it." _

_The boy shook his head and fingered the edge of the sphere a bit as he sniffled._

_"That was a pretty big wave. Why don't you show us your trick later when the wind dies down a bit, okay? Then you can show him who's king." She gave him a small wink._

_Wiping a small fist over his eyes and runny nose to rid himself of the last of his tears, the boy lay his head against her arm. "Okay."_

_His mother's hand reached for the sphere and turned it off._

Yuna shifted her gaze toward Tidus with a slow grin.

"Here it comes," he muttered to himself.

"That was so cuuuuuuute!" she squealed with delight.

He tolerated the reaction, but shook his head in disbelief that he had showed it to her. "When he started calling me 'Tidus', nearly everyone else in the sport did, too - when they weren't calling me 'Jecht Jr.', that is. King of the Waves! That's me!" He puffed out his chest with comic pride and folded his hands behind his head, but then he chuckled. "No one knew it was because I nearly drowned trying to do his stupid trick shot."

"What a sweet little face you had! How old were you, again? Three?" Yuna grinned and held up two fingers, as she snickered.

Tidus cut a glance toward her. "At least I didn't sneeze like a squatter monkey when I got water up my nose."

"Ah!" Yuna grabbed a pillow from the lounge pile behind them on the floor of the tent.

Tidus covered his head with his arms just in time to protect himself from the fluffy missile.

"Just for that remark, I'm keeping this one," she declared, hands on hips.

"No, no, no, no!" He tried to grab it before she did, but she snatched it first.

Holding the sphere protectively close, she braced another pillow against him to keep him away. "But it's so cute! Rikku and Paine would _love_ to see this."

"Don't you dare show that to anyone else." Knocking the pillow away, he reached for the sphere again.

She quickly scooted away, beyond his reach, and slipped the sphere behind her back. At the same time, she used another pillow-shield to keep him at arm's length. "Not even Wakka?"

"Are you crazy? Especially not Wakka!" He pulled the pillow away, rose to his knees, and caught her around the waist with one arm, while reaching behind her back for the sphere with the other.

Yuna cried out with a laugh as she tried to evade the tackle. "Stop! You're going to make me drop it and break it!"

Amused and surprised at her ability to switch the small thing to different hands and twist to keep it away from his clutches, Tidus started laughing, too. Then, just when he almost had it, she scrambled completely out of his reach and dropped the sphere down the front of her gun mage halter. Tidus's mouth dropped open as if she'd done the unthinkable. "What'd you do that for?" he complained.

Still giggling, Yuna stuck her tongue out at him in a very Rikku-like manner. "I told you. I'm keeping this one." She punctuated her defiance by folding her arms across her chest.

Switching tactics, Tidus sat back on his heels with a more suave demeanor. "Oh, and you think _that's_ going to stop me from taking it?"

She quirked a brow at him. "It had _better_ stop you from taking it." Maintaining a smug smile, she pushed up from her knees to stand.

"Oh, no you don't." He crawled over the scattered pillows and grasped her ankle to prevent her from leaving. Yuna laughed as she plopped back down to the straw floor mat, but as he drew near on his hands and knees, the grin on his face should have warned her he was up to no good. Taking a lesson from the other sphere, Tidus kissed her. He kissed her cheek, … her lips, … her neck, .. her ear ...

Yuna bent her head against his to counter his tactics. "That's cheating!" she loudly complained, enjoying every minute of his attention.

Tidus recalled the excuses she and Rikku had used during a certain beach blitz game after he first returned. "Nah, that's just a tactical distraction. This is cheating." He tilted his head the other way and brushed his lips over hers. As Yuna melted into his_ real_ kiss, and slipped a hand beneath his hairline to draw him closer, he lifted the hem between her neck and shoulder and smoothly extracted the sphere. The kiss was disrupted by laughter, however, as she caught the thieving hand before he could remove the prize from her reach.

"That is so wrong! Did you honestly think I wouldn't notice those sneaky little fingers -"

"Ah, come on! Do you realize how bad everyone's going to rag me if they see that sphere?"

Yuna, still laughing, stood and made her way to the door.

Tidus groaned in disgust at his defeat and let his head drop onto his arms on one of the throw pillows. He was doomed. No one would let him live this down. Then, unexpectedly, he heard the storm door to the hut slide shut and lock. When he looked back up, Yuna tucked the sphere under the bottom hem of her halter, snug against her ribs.

"Guess you'll just have to keep trying to get it back." She gave him a shy smile.

Tidus blinked in mute surprise, but then shifted to a cross-legged, seated position and leaned back against the tea table with suspicion. Tilting his chin, he gave her a sly expression. "Okay, that's way too easy. What's the catch?"

She laughed lightly. "No catch. No Rikku or Paine. No Brother. No Tobli. Just us. But I'll warn you that I have ulterior motives." She knelt before him to kiss his nose.

"Is that so?" He gazed into her forest green and sea blue eyes for a moment. Unable to choose which color he liked better on her, he decided that both colors fascinated him the most. "Well, in that case, this will only be in the way." He grinned as he drew the sphere away from the waist of her halter and flicked it aside. Then, he leaned forward to coax her into another kiss, this time pushing gently against her until she wrapped her arms around his neck and sank to the floor beneath him.


	27. Chapter 27: Summoning the Key

Chapter 27: Summoning the Key

"Hey, you!" Wakka knocked on the storm door of his own hut. "It's getting late, and I got a sleepy kid that needs to be put to bed, ya? Open up!"

Yuna opened the door and greeted Wakka and Lulu with a friendly smile. "Welcome back. We were just cleaning up the last of the spheres. Did you have fun in Luca?" She held out her hands wanting a turn holding Vidina, and Lulu was glad to give him up for a few minutes to give her shoulder a rest.

"Uh?" Wakka was surprised to see Yuna and looked past her shoulder to where Tidus was picking up the last of the pillows and replacing them.

"It was a beautiful day," Lulu answered her. "We ate at the cafe, caught a game, walked along the docks, played sphere break ... We bought Vidina a balloon, but he didn't know what to do with it yet, so we ended up letting another little boy have it. Oh, and Wakka spoke to the blitz officials for Tidus." She stepped past Yuna to speak with him more directly. "He told them you were back and filled them in on that summoner's dirty trick. They said you were cleared to play again, if you want, but there may still be fans who protest."

Tidus accepted that and looked to Wakka. "Thanks. I guess you can warn your abs that we'll start practice again tomorrow then." He gave the larger man's stomach a pat, then grinned and picked up his remaining spheres.

"Did you have time to watch all of your spheres?" Lulu placed her baby bag on the floor and lifted a stray sphere with a puzzled expression. "If not, you can come back tomorrow."

"Nah, I had plenty of time." Tidus picked up the basket he had brought the spheres in, but then saw Lulu handling the one he nearly forgot. Immediately, he set the basket back down and hopped over it to snatch it from her. "Kinda private," he apologized for his rudeness with a light head-bob and quickly tucked it away in the chest within the basket he carried.

Lulu quirked a brow at his abrupt dive for the item and glanced to Wakka with a smirk as she laid out a diaper changing pad. "I think you were right about the naked baby stuff."

Tidus became indignant, but noticed that Yuna was biting her lip debating whether to tell them what was really on that sphere. He quickly removed the baby from her arms and passed him back to Lulu, giving her the bag of junk spheres, instead. "We'd better be going now."

Yuna laughed at his attempt to get rid of her before she could tattle about the "Tiidaaa" sphere, but he was right. It was getting late. She started toward the door, when a smaller sphere under the tea table caught her eye. "Oh, wait. Did we watch this one?" She crouched to slide it out from the table and look for a label on it. "It looks recently made."

"Oh, that's the one Meimo and Kyudou gave me when they drop-kicked me into the Via Infinito to talk to Spira."

Yuna touched the activation button, and Wakka and Lulu drew near in curiosity to watch it with her.

"Woah, ... creepy." Wakka drew back when the entire sphere had played through to the finish. "So, that's the chick that runs the whole ... ship? It still feels weird to think of Spira as a machina, rather than a natural world, especially since Yevon banned all machina. What a two-faced thing to do, ya?"

"Yeah, but ... don't let word get around in public, yet," Tidus reminded them. "If someone tries to send Spira, the way they tried to send me, all of us could be in trouble. She chose to become the ship's life force, so we have to help her keep it that way."

"You should take this to Baralai," Yuna told Tidus. "He has other spheres of Spira."

"Maybe tomorrow after practice." He took it from her to place with Kimahri's sphere.

"Wait a minute. Can I see it again?" Yuna asked. "Part of what she said makes no sense to me."

Tidus handed it back to her, and Yuna replayed the ghost's words with careful consideration.

_"That sphere is a key that could unlock all the worlds I've seen, including the planet of our origin. But we cannot go back to where we came from - not ever. The Founders seek to destroy us. They fear what we have done. Our abyssal shame bears witness to our deeds, yet hides it from them. … No one else must find those maps, because there are those who hunger only for the power it could give them."_

"You mean the line about the abyssal shame?" Lulu asked.

"Yes," Yuna agreed. "I know she's probably talking about her shame in using magic on the ship, but ... it sounds odd the way she chose to say it like that."

"It's a coded message." Lulu agreed with her. "She was trying to tell Tidus something without being overheard."

"She was?" He scratched lightly at the back of his head, feeling awkward for missing it. "I'm ... not really good at picking up hints."

Yuna laughed lightly. "No, you're not, are you?"

"But all she's saying is that the Founders didn't want the Farplane on the ship, ... right?"

"Abyssal shame ... bears witness ... and hides it ... Abyssal shame hides it. ... Our shame ..." Yuna suddenly whirled on Tidus with open-mouthed shock. "I know where she hid the travel log! She did the same thing Seymour did! She buried it with someone she loved! Baralai really needs to see this!"

"Hey! Woah! We can't just fly off to Bevelle tonight." He took the sphere from her and turned it off, returning it to the basket next to Kimahri's, again. "It's late." He picked up the basket of spheres to carry back to the ship. "Tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed, calming her excitement. "But do you realize what that means? It means she trusted you to help guard it."

He drew back with doubt. "She did?"

Yuna moved behind Lulu to kiss Vidina's sleepy little face as he sucked his thumb. "Well, I'm really going this time, okay? Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Lulu smiled and gave the baby a light bounce, as Wakka escorted both of them outside.

"I'll catch up with you in a minute," Tidus told Yuna.

"Okay. Goodnight." Yuna smiled and waved to Wakka before walking toward the village gates.

"Thanks for talking to the officials for me." Tidus shifted the weight of the basket in his arms. "And thanks for giving me the space to do this."

"No problem. You going to let us see any of those?" Wakka grinned.

"I might." Tidus drew back jokingly as if having to think about it first. Then, he leaned forward and lowered his volume. "Hey, I don't suppose you'd consider, uh, ... letting me borrow some space again later this week?"

"What, so you can make out on my floor again? Don't tell me you didn't, because I'm not stupid, ya? Storm door locked, pillows all over the floor ... I ain't running no love shack for you, man." He smacked the back of Tidus's head.

Tidus laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "Hey, I just wanted to watch my spheres in peace. She's the one who locked the door and insisted on having her way with me."

"Yuna came onto you? _Yuna_?" Wakka laughed out loud. "That's not even close to believable."

"It's true! I didn't do anything this time."

"Yeah, _right_! You're not even a good liar about it. And just for that, the only way you're going to persuade me to let you borrow the tent again is if you're offering to babysit."

"Uh, ... no. I'm only offering to house-sit."

"Nah, I think I heard the word 'babysit' somewhere in there."

"Then I think your losing your hearing, old man."

"Then you need to get your own house, brat."

Tidus laughed at Wakka's teasing, but his gaze drifted back to Yuna as the distance and path carried her beyond his line of vision. "Nah, I kinda like being part of the crew for now. Maybe someday when I get tubby and want to retire, … like you."

"Hey, hey. I'm working on it. Get off my back." Wakka rubbed his stomach and sucked in his gut, proud of his small progress on getting back in shape so far. "Say, you know what? Lu and I were talking this morning, and we think we got an idea you might like."

))((

As Yuna walked back to the airship, humming happily to herself, she wondered if Shinra could convert any of the unbroken spheres in the sack into dress spheres. She wished she had thought of that in time to stop Tidus from dumping them in such a reckless manner.

After having watched the personal sphere regarding his nickname, they had watched a few others. He had chosen mostly animated moments with friends and family - spheres that felt more like who he was now, rather than who he was then. With time affecting subtle things like looks and behavior, he really was more like Shuyin's younger brother. Then again, maybe his existence was something she would never fully grasp. She didn't care to cross-examine it anymore.

Yuna was looking up at the stars, reminiscing with a smile, when her arm was grabbed roughly from behind. Startled, she dropped the bag of spheres and tried to draw her mage gun, but a sleep spell had already been cast over her. Her abductor caught her in his arms before she hit the ground, and then both vanished without a trace.

))((

On his way back to the airship, Tidus noticed the dropped bag of spheres in the road. He crouched to inspect them and picked them up, but ... where was Yuna? He called her name a few times and searched the area, but in the darkness of night, he saw no immediate trace of her. Snatching up the spheres, he ran back to the village and pounded on Wakka's hut. "Something's happened to Yuna! Don't go to bed yet! Wakka, we need to search the area!"

Wakka's threw open the curtains with grave concern. "What?"

"I found the spheres she was carrying in the middle of the road. Something's happened to her!"

"Okay, don't panic. I'll round up some people and torches. Go tell the crew on the ship. See if she went there."

Tidus nodded and raced down the road back toward the airship, but the Gullwings crew had not seen her return either. They joined the rest of the Besaid volunteers in searching the island, but Yuna was nowhere to be found. The search continued until sunrise, but turned up nothing before everyone retired to their homes in sadness.

Tidus returned to his futon and sat down feeling completely empty. He had failed as her guardian when she needed him the most. He lowered his head in frustration and grasped his hair between his fingers as his eyes fell on the spheres that she carried. She'd vanished without a trace. _Without a trace ... _With narrowed eyes and a bitter sensation in his stomach, he remembered that the body of the teleporting summoner had not been found. "Meimo," he growled beneath his breath.

Ransacking his collection of spheres for the one that Meimo and Kyudou had forced upon him, Tidus found and played back what Spira had said to him. He tried hard to think the way Yuna would when looking for clues. What had Yuna understood that he missed?

"Rikku! Paine!" He hurried down the stairs to where the two women sat at the bar, resting from their exhaustive search. "I think Meimo's going to teleport Yuna to the Farplane."

"Meimo? What would Meimo want with Yuna?"

He set the sphere down on the bar. "Revenge? The maps? Both? We never found his body, and he has the ability to teleport. It's a possibility, isn't it? Before Yuna left Wakka's she said she knew where the maps were hidden. I think the abyss that Spira mentioned is the Farplane's Abyss. But Yuna said she did like Seymour and buried it with someone she loved. But how could we know something like that? I just don't get it!"

Paine looked to him with surprise. Tidus had not seen Spira's spheres, but he was closer than he realized to solving the mystery. She played the sphere where Tidus had paused it. "Her baby," Paine suggested to Rikku. "Maedra entombed their baby in the Farplane's Abyss."

"And the baby was a shame to the Founders and Spira's father," Rikku recalled from the spheres. Then, she gasped as another clue from the spheres fell into place. "He's nabbed Yunie to make her summon the baby's aeon! The baby's aeon must be guarding the maps!"

Tidus would have been relieved that he was on the right track with his guessing, if the result had not made him even more frustrated. "I can't go to the Farplane!"

"No, but we can." Paine stood with a determined expression. "Contact Baralai about what's happened. He might have some ideas on how to interrupt Meimo's teleporting magic, so that he doesn't get away again. Let's use Brother's shortcut." She jogged down the hall to the lift with Rikku on her heels.

Tidus ran to the bridge and told Shinra to contact Baralai in Bevelle. As soon as Baralai appeared on the screen, Tidus informed him of the suspected situation.

"And you say Rikku and Paine are already on their way here?"

"They left using a teleporter we left behind the first time we went," Shinra informed him.

Baralai was thoughtful for a moment. "Gippal and Nooj both happen to be lodging here in Bevelle because of the stuff going on with the Machine Faction and the set up for the Echo Alliance trials. I'll give them a wake-up call, and we'll head straight down there."

))((

Yuna found herself lying among the flowers of the Farplane's Abyss when she woke from the sleep spell that had been cast over her. She sat up and looked around to find that her only companion was a very angry, very disarrayed, male summoner. "Meimo." She glared at him with contempt - something she rarely did, but something occurring quite frequently with him now. "Why did you bring me here?" she angrily demanded.

His sharp, green eyes narrowed on her. "I think you know why. We both figured out where Spira's sphere is hidden by reviewing what she said to your guardian. Kyudou and I had both seen her other spheres before we were excommunicated from New Yevon, but we never would have put the clues together if she had not been willing to speak to him. Yes, I know it was horrible of us to use him like that, but who doesn't use other people for their own selfish needs in this world?" He drew near and grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet. "Some of us are just less sugar-coated about it than the rest of you."

Yuna fumed at the idea that he had been spying on them at Wakka's hut. She struggled to pull away and reached for her weapon, only to find it had been removed, as had everything else that he suspected to be a threat, including her garment grid. "So, this is your way of taking revenge on him? Bringing me here?"

"No, that is merely a side benefit. He actually did me a favor by killing off Kyudou. Now I'm in charge of the Echo Alliance, and I will revive it as soon as you summon that baby's aeon for the map."

"Why can't you summon it? You're a summoner, too."

"Ah, but you are a high summoner who reportedly made it all the way to the final aeon's tomb during your pilgrimage to fight Sin. And this baby was not human. Its father was the same powerful guado summoner who sealed it. I think you have a better chance at calling it back from its grave." Meimo pulled her to the place where he had dug the flowers completely away from the ground. Beneath their feet was a large, flat stone - the tomb of Spira's child. "Summon the child's aeon, Yuna. Summon it so I can have the travel log, or I will haunt your so-called guardian until there's nothing left of him to haunt. I can still send him, you know. When he least expects it, I can take him back to the Via Infinito or bring him here. How long do you think he'll last among these pyreflies? I might not even have to waste my time on a sending dance."

Yuna couldn't bear the thought of losing Tidus one more time, so she decided it might be easier to give Meimo what he wanted, … for now. She could hunt him down with the Gullwings after she was free.

Though it had been a long time since she had summoned any aeons, Yuna approached the sealed tomb and knelt over its surface. This child was not a Fayth. This child was not completely human. This child had died before even learning a language. What if it did not hear or understand her prayers? Yuna performed the initial magic to draw the summoning circle glyphs at her feet and around the sealed tomb, but it was not enough. She closed her eyes and tried to sense the child's spirit wandering near its tomb, but once again she felt nothing. She had to reach further. What was the child's name? Spira had cried out her baby's name in the spheres. "Arantisu! Please! Come to me, Spirit of Arantisu!" she called, as her waves of summoning magic echoed throughout the Farplane.

The magic circle exploded with a bright light and a gust of wind. The seal that had protected the life force of Spira's baby for ages broke open, and the never-before-seen aeon rose out of it like a hatchling from a giant egg. The white dragon was small, but it had sharp, black talons and a sheen of silver magic glossing its scales. Around its neck, was a golden chain and a large pendant. Yuna stared at the aeon in awe for a moment. It was perhaps the most beautiful aeon she'd ever seen. Standing, she drew near to touch the creature in apology. "Arantisu ..."

Meimo snatched the pendant from the aeon's throat, and then promptly cast a stone spell on it.

"No … NO!" Yuna whirled on him in anger. "It's just a baby!"

Meimo chuckled to himself. "Then that would explain why it's not strong enough to throw off the spell. But I'm not about to make the same _stupid_ mistake that Kyudou did in summoning Shuyin's spirit. If I didn't summon it, I can't control it. Therefore, I have no use for it." He cast a thundaga spell on the petrified aeon, and quickly turned to avoid getting hit with the shattered pieces.

"NO!" Yuna cried out again and dropped to her knees over the tomb. Fists clenched, she choked back angry tears, but she had no time to run before a second stone spell froze her in place and entombed her alongside of it.

))((

With the threat of the dragon and Yuna safely removed, Meimo opened the pendant and removed the coveted silver disk. Pleased with himself beyond measure, he bowed to Yuna's statue, thanking her for her help. Then, he stepped through the portal into the Farplane's Heart.

He walked up the machina path past the repair stations that had been shut down for the night and went right to the floating pedestals. Climbing the long trail of stepping stones that rose to the giant cable, he approached, at long last, the center of the dome. Vegnagun had already been cleared away. The Machine Faction had done all the hard work for him.

Pausing over the platform, he crouched low and felt the floor for a thin crack in the surface. Then, he slipped the disk right through the force shield and into the key slot. As it clicked and whirred for the first time in ages, the vast, empty spaces of the Farplane's Heart began to blur and shake. Something enormous began to materialize. Meimo stood, opened his arms, and awaited the appearance of his hard-earned prize.

))((

"Yuna!" Paine stepped through the teleporter and called for her.

Rikku followed through the portal behind her, spotted Yuna near the unearthed aeon's tomb, and gasped in shock. "She's been petrified!" The small thief pulled a vial of soft cream from her utility belt and began smearing it over the stone statue's face, arms, and hands. Smoke began to rise from the burning stone as it drew the spell to the surface of Yuna's body and transformed into a soft shell of dried mud. After a moment, Rikku was able to break and peel away chunks of the spell to uncover Yuna's face and head. Then Yuna herself was able to break through the shell over her hands and arms. Paine helped free Yuna's back and torso from the mud before it became too soft and stuck to her.

"Meimo!" Yuna coughed as she emerged from the softening cocoon. "He took Arantisu's pendant and went into the Heart!" She reached a stiff arm to her friend for support as she tried to stand.

"We'll take care of Meimo," Paine promised. "You have someone else on the other side of that teleporter that's worried to death about you. Go let him know you're all right."

Yuna nodded in gratitude to her friends, then stumbled toward the teleporter.

))((

Within seconds, Yuna reappeared in the hall outside of the Celsius's bridge.

Tidus caught her and pulled her to his chest to hold her tight. "Yuna! I'm so sorry I didn't walk back with you," he apologized with worry. "That bastard took you to the one place I couldn't go!" he growled through clenched teeth.

Yuna closed her eyes and buried her face into his chest. "I knew you were with me. You still knew where to find me. Thank you."

))((

Upon entering the portal to the Heart, Paine and Rikku came to an astonishing and abrupt halt. Looming above them in the place where Vegnagun once sat was a large containment area they had never seen before.

"What the heck is that?" Rikku asked with fright.

The portal from the Abyss opened behind them. Half-dressed in whatever they could throw on at a minute's notice, Nooj, Gippal, and Baralai came through, weapons readied.

"Where's Meimo?" Baralai asked, looking up at the strange new development with a very unhappy expression. "Let me guess. He went in there."

Gippal was awed and more than a little jealous that he had not been able to unlock it himself. "He found the ship's bridge," he muttered in explanation to his companions. Suspicious and curious, he immediately ran up the path that took him to where he once fought Vegnagun to admire the new machina that replaced it.

His four friends followed right behind him.

When he reached the top, Gippal dropped to his knees and ran a hand over the surface of the platform. "How did he know how to unlock it?"

"He had more spheres to watch than we did," Nooj reminded him.

Gippal's fingers finally found the small crack in the impossibly hard surface. His fingers touched the sphere inside of it, and the sphere was automatically ejected. The entire bridge started to fade.

"Put it back! Put it back!" Rikku cried out. "He'll know we're here!"

"Yeah, and shouting won't give him a clue otherwise," Gippal sarcastically returned.

"The map was the key." Paine knelt beside him and pushed the disk back into the slot to bring the bridge back. "He must be inside trying to figure out how to use it."

"Then we have to prevent him from teleporting," Nooj reminded them. "If he teleports out, he can hide anywhere and come back at his leisure."

Gippal stood and reached into his pocket to produce his favored hush grenades. "Think this'll do the trick?"

Fireballs suddenly exploded around them with the force of a quake. Meimo stood in the doorway of the bridge casting his most powerful spells at them to get them off of his back once and for all.

Baralai gave Gippal a nod of approval. "Do it!" Then he cast a protective shell around himself and the rest of his companions.

Gippal ran straight into another oncoming fire spell and pitched the grenades at the summoner's feet, sending several puffs of smoke up around him. When Baralai released his defensive shield, Nooj ran after Gippal, readying his guns in case the silence magic didn't work.

The renegade summoner raised his staff to cast another fire spell, but found he could not. Angered, he raised his hands to cast teleport instead. Again, he found out he could not. He reached into a pocket for something that would rid him of the numbing problem when Nooj fired several shots to stop him.

As soon as Meimo fell, Baralai rushed forward to pin his shoulder to the ground with his bladed staff. "Meimo. We meet again. And this time, we have a good reason to make sure that you stay in Bevelle."

Gippal and Nooj glared at the man who had set them up, then walked past him to inspect the newly discovered bridge of their home world, … their spaceship, … Spira. Two skeletons lay on the floor, and one was still pinned to the wall by a stunning, antique summoner's staff.

"Ouch. That had to hurt." Gippal looked around and walked to the control panel. One quick scan and he was able to flip the switch to disable the force shield. Now he could safely remove the disk from the key slot in order to read its maps.


	28. Chapter 28: Breaking Ground

Chapter 28: Breaking Ground

A few days after the discovery of the bridge, the focus of the gathered leaders was able to shift back to the library project they had been working on before the trouble with Spira's spheres began. They all agreed with Baralai that they should continue to keep the ship's true nature out of public circulation for now, but they also agreed with Nooj that no singular body of power should be allowed to hoard the information. They knew that releasing the ancient spheres to the public would inevitably draw more people like Meimo and Kyudou to them, so they would have to be better prepared to cope with that when the time came. Right now, however, it was more important that the common era spheres be released to help the people of Spira continue to heal from the damage done by Sin, while repairs to the ship were being discreetly handled underground. The future of the Zanarkand library project had taken on more significance than any of them first thought.

After discovering the center of the ship's AI and figuring out which parts could safely be shut down for repairs, Gippal received a message from Tidus asking if he would join him and Shinra in drawing up blue-prints to give to Kimahri, since his machines were going to be doing the hard work. As Tidus explained the interior basics from what he remembered of most Zanarkand structures, Gippal and Shinra took notes and drew up designs on a graphics pad. Cid, Buddy, and Brother hovered nearby adding their opinions and insights as well.

They were finalizing the last stage of their plans, when Yuna came onto the bridge, brimming with excitement. She waited until she had everyone's attention before speaking, though. "Guess what? We're going to be adding a new baby to our family."

Gippal dropped his measuring device. Brother slapped both hands over his bald head as a noise escaped him that sounded something like a girlish squee - or maybe it was a sob.

Tidus's jaw dropped open in disbelief. "What? _How_?"

"Lot o' good that talk did you!" Cid smacked Tidus on the back of the head.

"I didn't do anything! Why are you people always blaming me when she's the one who -" Tidus started to argue back in his own defense, but realized anything that came out of his mouth next might be denying one thing but admitting another. He faced Yuna instead. "But … _how_?"

Yuna laughed at their reactions. "Come see." She took Tidus by the hand and led him out of the airship. Everyone else followed. Several Besaid villagers were already gathered outside on the beach, encircling something and talking excitedly about it. They parted to let Yuna into the circle, where a small, white dragon sat perfectly still in its center. It still wore a golden chain around its neck, but the pendant that once adorned it was missing. The dragon looked up at Yuna with big, blue eyes, then blinked in curiosity at the new people she had brought back with her.

Gippal snorted and clapped Tidus on the back. "Congratulations, _Dad_. He's got your eyes."

"_She_," Yuna corrected with a grin. "This is Arantisu - the aeon of Spira's baby. I had just summoned her when Meimo petrified her and sent her away again. We've been so busy I haven't had a chance to go back and see if she was all right, until now. Maedra and Spira decided to turn what was left of their daughter's life into an aeon, so she could guard her treasure for as long as necessary. Arantisu is not an aeon of Yevon's Fayth. And other than Spira herself, she's probably the only aeon we have left. She doesn't seem to want to be sent to a final rest, though. As far as she's concerned, her life is just beginning. Her soul is very young, even though she is technically very old." Yuna looked to Tidus and smiled. "She has a lot in common with you in that sense. Maybe that's why Spira chose to let you in on her secret - so that you could protect her and help guard her treasure." The little dragon stood only as high as Yuna's waist, but when she patted its head as if it were a big cat, a loud purr-like sound came from deep within its serpentine throat.

"But ... I can't go to the Farplane to guard that thing. I can't even summon aeons. I'd make a lousy aeon guardian," he stated the obvious.

Yuna smiled at his self-doubt. "That's not what the Fayth thought when they created you to help them. And Spira may not have known that, but she knew since you came from a plane of magic, you would understand what it means to be summoned into someone else's service. And you were honest and courageous to speak with her the way that you did." Yuna felt proud for him. "But since you're not a summoner, I guess I'll just have to help you look after her. Anyway, I talked to Baralai and Nooj and they both agree she should keep her treasure, ... at least until there is a better time to share it." Yuna glanced around at the villagers on the beach and smiled to her friends, letting them know that only parts of the whole story had been shared concerning the new aeon's appearance.

Tidus drew near to whisper. "You told everyone about Spira?"

"I told them I met an unsent who protected her baby by turning her into an aeon. I gave Baralai the key because he has an idea how to seal the travel logs a little longer. If Arantisu keeps it with her in her tomb, and I'm the only one that can summon her, the maps are about as safe as they can be. Maybe someday we can make good use of them, but right now, we still have a lot to learn about our origins before attempting to find them."

Gippal drew near to Tidus and hooked an arm over his shoulders. "Hm, white dragon, white hair ... Your _baby_ actually looks more like Baralai. I'd be very worried, if I were you."

Approaching the baby dragon with uncertainty, Tidus bent forward, hands on knees, to examine her more closely. Arantisu stretched her long muzzle to sniff him in return. "She's cute. I like her." He scratched her lightly under the chin. "Is she going to grow up, or stay this size? She's not very intimidating, you know. It's probably not practical to summon her for a fight, … unless you want fiends to drop dead from laughing at us."

Yuna giggled at his assessment. "Bahamut's aeon was full-grown in spite of his young human age. But Arantisu was half-guado, and she was just a baby when she was entombed. So, ... I guess we'll have to wait and see how that makes her different."

"Isn't she cute?" Rikku grinned and moved in closer to pet her. "Can we keep her on the ship and teach her tricks?"

"She's a dragon, Rikku - not a dog!" Brother protested. "She could fry something with one sneeze!"

"You mean_ if _she can cough up anything more than smoke?" Buddy chuckled.

Yuna laughed. "Oh, stop picking on her. She can't help that she's small." She stepped back away from the circle. "Okay, the other reason I pulled everyone out here is for this!" With a big grin, she produced an empty memory sphere. "We're sphere hunters, and yet we haven't been making any of our own spheres. So, everyone say, 'Hi!'" she told them as she activated it and held it up within view of the large gathering.

"Hi!" Everyone comically appeased her and waved into the sphere.

Yuna laughed and zoomed in on Tidus and the dragon. "Don't forget about -"

"I know, I know. I have to play the song for a recording. I haven't forgotten," he answered, rolling his eyes but then giving her a playful wink.

"Here. Let me take that so you can get in there." Paine offered, taking the sphere from Yuna and stepping back to get a wider scope.

"That's right. Let the professional do it. Hey, you should do that again, Dr. P. Record for the Gullwings the way you used to record for us," Gippal suggested.

Paine smiled at the suggestion. "Maybe I will." She turned the sphere toward him while he was speaking, but when he got too close and made a face, she laughed a little and pushed him away to turn the sphere back toward Yuna and Tidus. "Okay, do something sweet, you two. This is for the record."

"Why can't I just make a face like he did?" Tidus sat down in the sand and crossed his ankles, draping his elbows over his knees.

"Because he's an idiot." Paine smirked as Yuna dropped into place on the sand beside Tidus and waved at her.

"Hey," Gippal lightly protested her remark.

"Something sweet, huh? That's easy enough." Tidus leaned across Yuna as if to kiss her, but then grinned mischievously grabbed her ribs to tickle her instead. Yuna yelped, laughed, and twisted to get away from him.

"What are you doing? That's not sweet!" Rikku fussed behind them and tried to help Yuna break free. "You were supposed to kiss her!"

"Rikku, mind your own business." Cid tried to pull his daughter away from them.

"She never minds her own business. Why should she start now?" Brother tried to help him.

Rikku squawked and held tighter to Yuna. Then, she latched onto Buddy to avoid being pulled away. Buddy tried to pry himself free from Rikku's grasp.

At their feet, Arantisu gave a strange little growl and licked the side of Tidus's face with her very long, forked tongue. "Uwaaa! Yuck!" Tidus immediately hopped up from the sand, but fell back again with a disgusted shudder.

Freed from his grasp, Yuna jumped up to help Rikku.

"Water, ... Water can break up fights." Shinra ran back to the engine room to get some buckets and then returned to slosh them directly on Rikku, Yuna, Brother, Tidus, and Gippal. It broke apart the argument, but backfired when all of them turned on him instead. The little dragon didn't know what was going on, but she loped along behind the chase like everyone else, excited to join the fun.

Paine sighed heavily, but let the sphere continue recording the mayhem. "So much for trying to be professional with this bunch." Smiling to herself and shaking her head, she followed to get a close-up of them cooperatively taking Shinra for a little dunk in the ocean.

))((

The following day, Gippal and Tidus set out to take their finished plans to Kimahri. "It's freakin' cold up here!" the engineer complained, having gone from visiting a warm, sunny beach to a cold, snowy mountain. "It's a wonder the ronso haven't frozen off irreplaceable body parts by now. I'm ready to go back to Bevelle and work in the warmth of the Farplane. What was I thinking when I volunteered to help Kimahri do this?"

Tidus laughed at Gippal's complaints, but trudged onward. "I'd take Gagazet over the Farplane any day."

"Well, yeah, you would. Hey, no one's probably ever asked you because it's probably kinda rude, but ... what's it like? On the other side, I mean?"

Tidus tried to recall his two years in the Farplane, but it had been such a strange state of awareness without existence that there wasn't much to say about it. He finally came to the only descriptive he could be certain about. "Lonely."

As they rounded the corner into the magical cavern of the sacred mountain and climbed the steps, Kimahri came down from the teleporter to meet them. "Tidus, ... Gippal, ... Kimahri glad to see you again."

"Well, here they are." Tidus sighed, sending up a misty breath before his own face as he passed the blue-prints and a sphere to the ronso. "This contains footage of the original Zanarkand library in it." He activated the sphere and indicated which building it was on the horizon. "Is that clear enough?"

"Clear enough for study. Tromell connected a model image of other spheres and one from Seymour. We can add this and compare." Kimahri touched a clawed finger to the sphere to pause and examine the building in the captured memory. The sphere was so tiny in his strong hands that he had to handle it as if it were a delicate egg.

"I've brought the machina that you can use for the job," Gippal added. "Some of my people from the Machine Faction are down at the ruins with it, whenever you're ready."

"The Gullwings will be at the ruins off and on while you're working on the construction," Tidus added. "We won't get in your way, though. We'll be looking for spheres down under the original library, and I've got the rest of the blitz season to focus on."

"Alright, then. Let's go do this thing!" Gippal clapped his hands together.

Kimahri gave a nod and led them back to where his ronso workers had gathered. Then, together, they descended the sacred mountain toward the ruins. There, they met with the Machine Faction to learn how to use their construction machina and go over the plans together.

))((

When all of the council members and parties involved in the project were called together at the construction site to do a small ground-breaking ceremony, Tidus was unanimously voted as the one who should dig the first hole. After doing so, he turned the shovel over to Kimahri.

"I'm so excited!" Yuna gave both of them hugs when he was done. "I can't wait to see this thing come together."

"Ah, well, you're going to have to wait a little longer," Gippal told her with a wry grin.

"Tidus asked Kimahri to keep Yuna out." The ronso folded his arms and twitched his tail - his characteristic way of letting her know he wasn't going to budge on the decision.

Yuna blinked in surprise and faced Tidus accusingly. "_What?_"

"It's going to be a surprise," he quickly explained. "You'll get to see the outside while they're working on it, but you won't be able to see the inside until it's done."

"But it was my suggestion to build it. You didn't even want to come to meetings, remember?"

"That was because he knew to be _very afraid_ of us." Nooj's comment and dry glance toward Tidus brought chuckles from the gathered group.

"You will like the surprise, Lady Yuna." Tromell smiled and tried to put her at ease. "It is a very good surprise."

Yuna looked back to Tidus, and her eyes narrowed slightly with suspicion, but he offered only a grin in return. She looked to the Gullwings crew behind her. "Do you know anything about this?"

"Nope," Rikku shook her head.

"Not a clue. But he's up to something all right." Paine agreed with Yuna's doubts.

Everyone else shook their heads in denial of any inside knowledge.

Baralai stepped forward and presented Yuna with a small box. "Before I forget ..." Lowering his voice just for her to hear, he continued to speak. "I've placed magical wards on Arantisu's pendant. There are two charms in this box with it - the only two charms that will safely unlock the wards. That way, she can wear the pendant without fear of anyone accidentally opening it. Wear one; hide the other in a safe place."

"Thank you, Baralai." She accepted the gift and opened the box to see the items, then laughed at the shape of the silver charms. Withdrawing one, she showed it to Tidus.

Tidus laughed as he accepted the charm. "Zanarkand Abes."

Baralai was amused that they liked the design. "That symbol will never slip past me again."

"Psst!" Yuna leaned toward Baralai and whispered. "Do you know why he won't let me see the inside of the library as it's being built?"

"Psst! Yes!" the praetor answered in a rather loud variation of a hushed tone. "But it's a secret!"

Everyone but Yuna laughed at Baralai's response.

"Oh, never mind." She frowned with a small pout and turned her back to them, but then she looked to Tidus and gave him a curious smile.

))((

Luca stadium was as crowded as ever when Tidus arrived with the Gullwings to play his third game of the season, but he approached the stadium with caution when he rounded the corner and saw the typical throng of perpetual autograph seekers outside of the locker rooms. Sunsa and her recorder were among them. For the first time in his life, he was nervous about playing a game. "What do I tell them?" he asked with uncertainty.

"The truth," Yuna whispered in answer. She slipped her hand into his to remind him he would not be alone this time.

Wakka and Lulu showed up from the other side of the stadium, and Wakka spotted his star player from across the venue. He gestured for Lulu to keep Vidina and herself at a safe distance this time, just in case. Then he crossed the floor to meet the Gullwings crew standing behind Tidus. "If anyone can win back our fan base and cheer on our players, it's you." He set a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Ready, brudda?"

Tidus gave a hesitant nod, then released Yuna's hand and allowed Wakka to lead him toward the crowd and the reporter. He noticed that the crowd quieted as they drew near. The rest of the Aurochs team had been waiting at the stairs, but they came forward, along with one of the game's officials who was present to supervise, as soon as he and Wakka were near. These signs of acceptance raised his hopes, but the presence of new guards to keep the crowd from getting out of hand again put more of a dent in his spirit than his fear of getting hurt again. A blitzball game had no business becoming a major security operation.

"Tidus." Sunsa greeted him warmly. "I'd like to apologize for any role I might have played in what happened at your last game. Would you like another chance, to set the record straight?" She held the microphone toward him.

Looking up, he saw his own face on the live broadcast screens that lined the stadium and docks. He closed his eyes and drew a breath. Then, he turned to face the recorder, the reporter, the official, his teammates, and the fans. "I am not unsent." His voice echoed through the streets of Luca as if more than one of him were speaking. It reminded him that Shuyin was still a part of him, … still with him, even now. Shuyin would not have been afraid to speak up and say what was on his mind - not even in the face of getting mobbed again. So, he continued. "Two years ago Sin drew me out of an illusionary world of magic created by the Fayth. He dumped me into this one to help Yuna and her other guardians end his own madness. If you want to blame someone for bringing me here, blame them. But during my time here, I fell in love with this place, ... and these people." He glanced to Yuna. "I never died to this world before I was sent away, … so, the Fayth have allowed me to come back."

Tidus continued to meet the eyes of as many faces around him as he could - to know each face that would absolve him, or condemn him. "If you feel that I shouldn't be here playing this game anymore because I came from a different place and time, say the word and I'll walk away. But please don't send me away from Spira again. Please ..." Tidus bowed at the waist in apology for having caused them concern and awaited the public verdict on whether he was still welcome. Because even if the officials had approved him, it meant nothing without the support of the fans.

Two small feet broke from the crowd and ran to him, causing astonished murmurs. Small hands cupped his chin and lifted his face to make him look up at her. "Will you score a goal again, like that one that goes way up in the air, if I cheer for you?"

Tidus smiled remembering her. "Rukiina with two i's, … you bet."

A muffled chuckle went up from the crowd. Wakka clapped his hands, as if that was all the verdict needed. "You heard the lady! We got a game to play!" The Aurochs and game official easily joined Wakka's enthusiasm. Then, to Tidus's amazement, the entire crowd of blitzball fans began to applaud and bow in apology to him, instead.

Sunsa grinned and drew the microphone back to herself. "Well, folks, you saw it live, here in Luca. I believe the Aurochs are ready to play some ball today! Am I right?" She turned the microphone back to him.

"Thank you," he said, giving her an unexpected hug that brought color to her cheeks. Then, he faced the crowd and threw a fist into the air. "Let's blitz!"

As the cheers went up, he crouched and held up his hand to high five the little girl that had bravely confronted him. From within the crowd, Tula came forward and held up his hand too. Tidus stood and gave him a high five as well, only to find himself surrounded by dozens more hands wanting to wish him good luck and get his autograph.

The Aurochs versus the Ronso turned out to be a close match, but for the Aurochs, the end brought another exhilarating victory.

))((

Tidus covered Yuna's eyes as he led her to a small clearing on a hill just behind and below the front row of huts in front of the Besaid temple. He had told her he had a surprise for her, so she played along with his little game, though she had no idea what he could be up to this time. "What if I trip on a tree root or something because you won't let me see where I'm going?"

"No problem. I'll catch you if you fall, ... after I laugh at you, of course."

She giggled and held onto his wrists while he guided her. "What if I make you fall, too?"

"Then, I guess whoever else is watching will do the laughing." Finally, he came to a stop. "Ready?"

"Okay."

He pulled his hands away. "_Tidaa!_"

Yuna stared at the sand, grass, and trees for a moment looking for the surprise that he had promised, but when _only_ the sand, grass, and trees remained visible to her, she faced him with doubt.

"You can guess all those sphere clues, but you can't notice what's _not_ right in front of you anymore? That broken hut that was here since, like, forever has been cleared away," he pointed out what he thought should have been obvious.

Yuna looked again. "Oh! You're right!" The remains of a little hut damaged by Sin's last attack on Besaid had been there for some time now. The owner had abandoned it rather than rebuilding it again. Now, all that remained was the little patch of cleared shade. But there were new foundation posts set in the ground, and a stack of building supplies were being collected to the side.

When she still didn't seem to understand why he brought her here, Tidus sighed in disgust at her inability to use his clues to solve the puzzle. "Wakka's going to help me build a hut!" he blurted in excitement.

Yuna's happiness faded. "A hut? But ... I thought ... "

He moved in front of her to face her. "When I went with Gippal to take the plans to Kimahri, he suggested that I hold a position as one of the guardians at the ruins, but I told him Besaid was my home now. And earlier, when I thanked Wakka for letting me use his hut to watch my spheres, he suggested this spot for when I was ready to build a place of my own. At the time, I didn't want to move because I realized I liked living on the airship with everyone. But after the last game, I got to thinking about it, and, well, ... I haven't had a home since leaving Zanarkand two years ago. I think it would help me feel like I belong here to have my own place, even if I only use it between sphere hunting runs. So, Wakka's offering to help me do this."

Yuna's smile slowly returned. "Then, … you're not leaving the Gullwings?"

"Nope," he answered with a grin.

Stepping around him to walk the perimeter of the clearing, she tried to imagine how it might look when it's done. The more that she tried to envision it, the broader her smile became. "I like it."

"I hoped you would." He drew her into his arms. "Because I want to share it with you." He kissed the top of her head.

Yuna's brows drew together in surprise as she turned to face him. "With me?"

"Always is a long time to share a bathroom with Paine and Rikku _and_ Brother _and_ Buddy _and_ Cid _and_ Shinra _and_ ... whoever else we take on board. I didn't promise I'd stay with _them_ that long."

Yuna hugged his neck tightly as tears came to her eyes.

Tidus heard her sniffle and began to worry. "Did ... I say something wrong?"

She shook her head and drew back to look into his eyes, laughing lightly at his confusion. "No, you said it ... just right."

Tidus understood now. Drawing her head to his shoulder, he leaned his head against hers. "Always," he repeated his promise once more.


	29. Chapter 29: Epilogue

29: Epilogue: Zanarkand Library

"Testing, one, two. Testing." Shelinda tapped her microphone and glanced around the ruins at the wide-eyed squatter monkeys that watched the large gathering of people.

Maku checked his sphere recorder and nodded that the settings were ready. Then, he gave her the cue that she was broadcasting directly to Luca.

"Oh! We're here at the Zanarkand Ruins to witness the opening ceremony of a special building." Shelinda smiled sweetly at the sphere recorder. "As you all know, it was a year ago today that New Yevon, the Youth League, the Machine Faction, the Ronso, and the Guado all agreed that historical spheres found around Spira should be considered a global treasure. They decided to preserve the spheres in a vault built right here in Zanarkand to honor the memories of those who died in the Machina War - a war that forever changed our world. It's taken thousands of hours of labor, with all of Spira's communities pitching in to help in some way. You can see it behind me. It's just to the left of the broken road that leads directly into the ruins. It's a beautiful five-story tower designed in the same ancient architectural flavor of the ruins. We don't know what kinds of surprises it has hidden inside, because those directly involved with the project are keeping a tight lip on the matter. One thing's for sure, everyone here is excited. We'll be back in a minute with more, live from the Library at Zanarkand." The sphere recorder's hum faded, and Shelinda lowered her microphone. "Hoo! How was that?"

"I couldn't get a good view of the library." Maku pointed to the high mound of rock facing the water that had flooded the ruins. "Maybe we should move up on that hill over there."

"Okay." Shelinda made her way through the crowd to the overlook area. They had just made it to the top of the rocks when a distant engine could be heard in the sky. "Oh! There they are! Turn it back on!"

Maku urgently turned the sphere recorder back on and focused on her. Then, he cued her that they were live once more.

"Hello, Luca. Shelinda here, back with more live reporting from Zanarkand. It looks like the Celsius is getting ready to land with the last of its passengers flown in from around Spira. Just as Lady Yuna and the Gullwings generously transported hundreds of people into the Thunder Plains for a concert a little more than a year ago, they are now volunteering to bring as many people as they can squeeze into their ship to Zanarkand for this library dedication. Here they come!"

The red airship shone like a fireball in the late afternoon sun as it jetted down from the clouds toward the gathering, but it landed over the water with surprisingly gentle ease and came to a stop close enough to solid ground that the landing ramp was able to act as a bridge. Spectators that had been thrilled with the ride were now thrilled to disembark near the sacred ruins. Most of the visitors had never even seen the region before, so they were as awed at their first sight of the legendary ruins as they were at the new library standing on the grounds. A few minutes after the last of the passengers had left the ship, the Gullwings crew exited down the ramp, as well.

"There she is, folks. Lady Yuna has just arrived, along with the rest of the Gullwings. Let's see if we can get a word with her. Lady Yuna!" Shelinda waved from her perch on the rocks. After Yuna waved back, Shelinda gestured for her recorder to cut and follow. She hopped down from the rocks and ran toward the twenty-year-old former summoner, with her recorder in tow. "Lady Yuna." She paused to catch her breath for a moment. "Would you mind doing an interview?"

Yuna looked back over her shoulder at the rest of the crew. They did not seem bothered by it, so she consented. "We have a few minutes before the opening ceremony begins." Yuna's cheerful smile lit up her blue and green eyes, as always. She wore her shoulder-length hair pinned up formally for the occasion, though the way the thin layers fell back down around her face made it look more feathery than smooth. Her long braid hung down to her ankles as it usually did, but Rikku had loosened some of the long strands to weave into smaller braids, decorating them with a touch of beads here and there, and looping them intricately around and into the pinned up bun. Yuna wore one of Arantisu's Abes charms on a thin gold necklace above the silver one that usually graced the base of her neck. Having also chosen to wear Lenne's dress sphere for the occasion, she looked very elegant.

"Thank you, so much!" Shelinda faced her recorder, who turned the sphere back on. "We're here again, live in Zanarkand. Lady Yuna, Zanarkand was once a sacred pilgrimage for the summoners of Yevon, but last year, it was turned into a sphere hunting tourist attraction. What's so different about drawing people to Zanarkand for a library instead of hunting spheres? Won't that be cheapening the value of this sacred place, too?" She turned the microphone to Yuna.

Cid stepped forward, slightly miffed. "That wasn't cheapening any value. There's spheres all over this place, and they all need to be dug up."

"The difference," Yuna politely interrupted before her uncle could get too testy, "is that the spheres were being used as a souvenir attraction before - a money maker that benefited only the lucky few who found them. Now, we're going to house them in this library for everyone on Spira to learn from them. Another difference," she continued, "is that the ruins themselves will be off-limits to tourists. The ronso have formed a new honor guard for Zanarkand, and only expert sphere hunters will be allowed beyond the library, in order to protect the city from further damage."

"I see. Any preview of what lies inside for us?" Shelinda turned the microphone back to Yuna.

"Well, ..." Yuna gave a small laugh. "To be honest with you, I'm not sure what to expect. I haven't been working on the library itself because I've been exploring the ruins under the water and helping to map out the sectors with our navigator, Buddy. Kimahri Ronso, Tromell Guado, and Gippal of the Machine Faction have been in charge of the building plans." Her eyes shifted toward Tidus. "And our native consultant has stubbornly refused to give me permission to enter."

Tidus smiled quietly from where he stood beside her. He still hated stuffy, formal things, but he willingly donned his black basilisk armor for this occasion. Today, above all else, he was a guardian once more. His hair had grown long enough to reach the base of his neck now, but other than that, he looked the same as ever. He had aged exactly one year, just like everyone else, but at eighteen, any changes in his face had been so subtle as to be unnoticeable. He wore Arantisu's other Abes charm on a thin, golden chain above his old silver one. Most people assumed the matching charms had something to do with the fact that he and Yuna were a couple. Only a handful knew their true purpose. On his wrist he wore a small, team sport bracelet alongside his typical silver one - the only visible reminder that he was captain of the current Crystal Cup champions.

Shelinda continued with her interview. "Is New Yevon going to be in charge of the library?"

"No." Yuna quickly shook her head. Rumors of New Yevon controlling access to the valuable collection of spheres would only raise the hair on the back of the necks of Youth League members, and the last thing they needed now was more dissension between the popular factions. "New Yevon is only a partner in this endeavor. We assure you that the previous policies on temple treasury items have been reevaluated so that this library can be for _all_ of Spira."

Shelinda turned back to the sphere recorder. "Well, there you have it, folks. I think that's a wrap. Let the opening ceremony begin." She lowered her microphone as Maku turned the sphere recorder off. "Thank you for your time, Lady Yuna. We're really excited to see what's inside the library."

"I think we all are," Yuna admitted.

))((

"Lady Yuna? Tidus?" Tromell Guado greeted her with a bow as he and Kimahri approached.

"We're ready," she answered, knowing why they were here. Grasping Tidus's hand, she followed them to where the rest of the council members stood up on the stage. Spotting Wakka and Lulu in the crowd, she laughed lightly at the way Wakka was making Vidina wave at her from atop his dad's shoulders. The one-year-old looked stunned to be surrounded by so many people. Lulu gave her an assuring smile, and Yuna waved back at them before summoning a microphone to address the large crowd. "I'd like to thank all of you for coming this afternoon. I once told someone," her eyes shifted to Tidus, "that people define themselves by where they come from, ... whether it's a place, or a time, or a personal background." She remembered their conversation on the rainy deck of the Thunder Plains a little over a year ago and smiled at how sure of himself he was now, compared to then.

Tidus stepped back and crossed his arms over his chest, pretending not to be the example in this speech.

"Spira has had trouble being able to freely discover what that definition is for all of us," she continued. "This library is a collection of places, times, and personal backgrounds that will hopefully restore some of that lost identity to us. My friends and I, and many of you, have contributed to that collective identity. I wish that I could thank each one of you personally for those contributions, but we'd be here all night if I did." She smiled as a small wave of chuckles rose from the crowd. "However, there are a few people we all need to thank, or this day would not have been possible. I would like to thank Kimahri Ronso and his tribe of ronso from Mt. Gagazet for being the backbone and muscle behind the construction of the building to house the spheres."

Kimahri gripped his lance and stared stoically at the cheering crowd with his golden eyes, but his tail twitched ever so slightly with pride. His broken horn tipped in respect to the people acknowledging him. His ronso builders and new guardians stood in a ring around the event in the same stoic position he held. Isaaru stood among them, pleased to _not_ be the _only_ keeper of the sacred place anymore.

Yuna continued down the list. "I would like to thank Baralai, the Praetor of New Yevon, for being the first leader of Bevelle to open his mind and his heart to sharing the temple's collection of spheres."

Baralai bowed formally before the gathering that cheered for him.

"Tromell Guado, … for his advice and knowledge of the Farplane, and helping with the display of the spheres themselves."

The master of the forest people bowed graciously a couple of times for the applause given to him.

"Gippal, head of the Machine Faction, has donated his time and genius, as well as his _machines,_ to the effort." Yuna was careful to try to say the new word for Gippal's improved inventions. "And we also thank his army of knowledgeable engineers, who were once shunned for their experimentation with old technology ..."

Gippal raised both hands to the fanfare he received, but then waved it off like it was nothing. Al Bhed workers in the crowd bounced and waved, glad to receive their recognition, too.

"A word of thanks goes out to Nooj, meyvn of the Youth League, and his volunteers. If not for them, this entire project might have met ... a fatal end." She looked to the meyvn and smiled in gratitude, both public and personal.

He bowed and then nodded to her, acknowledging both.

When Yuna turned to face Tidus for mention of his participation, his slow grin made her grin as well. "I'd also like to thank our resident Zanarkand expert, though most of you know him as the captain of the Besaid Aurochs, ... Tidus's special knowledge has been the glue that brought all the pieces together."

The blitz fans in the crowd gave a rowdy stadium-style "Go Aurochs!" cheer, as he did a little victory dance and bow that made them laugh.

Yuna laughed and cuffed his arm. "Show off."

"Well, I could have done The Sublimely Magnificent Jecht Shot Mark III, but I'm not sure I want to try it with a really big sword on my back, you know?"

"You better not be doing no flips up on that stage!" Wakka yelled from the crowd. "Don't make me come up there and pound some sense into you! You'll just have to settle for the little dance, Yuna!"

On cue, Tidus repeated his victory-wiggle-dance for her. Collective chuckles rose from the crowd as Yuna turned away with an embarrassed laugh, shaking her head. Then, having enjoyed the fact that he managed to crack her up in the middle of her speech, he backed up a step and attempted to blend into the background once more.

Yuna glanced at him once more, then gestured down toward the crowd before she could start laughing again. "I would also like to thank my friends and family among the Gullwings. Many of the spheres on display in the library were obtained with their help. And they've supported this project through thick and thin, even when I lost my heart to do so. I love you guys." She blew them a kiss.

Maku, Shelinda's sphere recorder, spanned the large group to try to include everyone in the broadcast. Shinra waved, Buddy smiled and nodded, and Cid puffed out his chest proudly. Brother flapped his arms like a seagull, Paine rolled her eyes at him, and Rikku stepped forward to grin into the sphere's convex lens with a peace sign.

"And finally, I would like to thank all of you who donated some of your own sphere collections to the effort. I realize the gil that these items are worth, but we all know that their real worth is priceless." Yuna paused to applaud the crowd itself, and let them cheer for themselves. Then, she looked over her shoulder to see that the musicians were joining her on the stage and the rest of the committee was splittting in different directions. "And now, I'd like to dedicate a song to all those souls that lived here, in Zanarkand, over a thousand years ago, when it was very much alive and full of hope for the future. This song was once performed by Lenne, a popular singer who fell in love with someone very special, and … " She looked down from the stage to where Tidus had moved. "And I can't blame her."

He blushed somewhat and looked away again, making her smile.

"She lost sight of him for a long time, but she never gave up hope that they would be together again someday. So, ... here's to the rekindling of hope." Yuna turned to the band and cued them to start the music.

))((

As Tidus watched her sing, he was entranced by her beauty and her voice. It was one of Lenne's songs from the Zanarkand concert sphere he'd found for her. He was already very familiar with the song because Shuyin knew it so well, and it awakened memories of Lenne, hearing it again. But it also brought back not-so-distant memories of Yuna herself. It was strange having heard it sung over the course of two lifetimes by two people he loved - strange, but nice. He was sure that Lenne, and Shuyin were listening with approval, wherever they were.

When Yuna finished singing, she bowed low amid the applause, then stepped back and offered the microphone to Baralai as he stepped forward. Tidus moved into position opposite Kimahri at the large library doors, where they both waited for Baralai to speak.

"And now, as we invite you to browse our museum of memories, we also ask you to respect the solemn sacrifices made in this lost city. Please do not disturb the rest of the spirits who remain in Zanarkand. If you want to see Zanarkand up close to get a taste of the past, we have a better idea in mind." Baralai's lips were touched by a hint of a smile as he gestured to Tromell, Kimahri, and Tidus.

Kimahri and Tidus grabbed the handles of the large outer doors and pushed them open, locking them into position to remain that way for the visitors. Tromell disappeared inside of the library for a moment and came out with a unique-looking sphere. Tidus gestured to Yuna to bring the microphone down from the stage, so she accepted it back from Baralai and hopped down to give it to Tromell.

"This sphere," the guado explained, "is a collection of spheres that were synchronized and pieced together like a three-dimensional puzzle. We used it to make our working model of the library, but when we had finished with that, we thought it would be a shame to junk it. So, we set up projection spheres around the ruins and at set times of the day and night visitors will now be able to see a different kind of Zanarkand."

He touched the activation button and the ruins seemed to come to life. Incredibly tall buildings rose into the sky all around them and extended into the sea far beyond them. Waterfalls spilled their cascades down the sides of buildings like fountains. A magical wall behind the city acted as a barricade against normal storms hitting the coast, and two large water arches marked the prominent city's location for even distant travelers to see. Images of ordinary people going about their daily lives doing ordinary things swept between and around the gathering, and the transporter blinked and whirred between the tall spires like a loop of light. Vehicles rolled along the highways, only to lift into the air and fly away overhead. It was Zanarkand before there ever was such a thing as a Machina War.

))((

Yuna drew in a breath of astonishment like everyone else. The illusion felt so real that she wanted to run into it and see all that there was to see. "Was this the surprise you were hiding all that time?" she asked of Tidus.

"Part of it." Putting a finger to his lips to be quiet, he used the distraction to sneak her away from the crowd and into the new library. Kimahri made no move to stop them.

Yuna was delighted by the blend of magic and machina that made up the lighting, furniture, and decor of the interior design. She was touched by a portrait of her father with Sir Auron and Sir Jecht at his side that hung near a room dedicated to the high summoners and Sin. And she giggled at the statue of Maechen near the lighted display map of the building's levels. "Whose idea was that?"

"Mine," he admitted with a proud grin. Kimahri said it needed a statue, and I figured if anyone deserved to be carved in stone here, it should be that old geezer."

Yuna put a hand to her mouth and tried not to laugh, but she supposed he was right.

"He could tell you everything about anything if you had the patience to listen to him long enough." Tidus pointed her toward the directory map in the center of the lobby. "We have rooms devoted to each of the regions and a few rooms for things each region has in common." Taking her hand, he didn't wait for her to look at the entire map before pulling her with him toward one of the rooms. "The Zanarkand rooms will be the most expansive because they're meant for anything related to the Machina War, including the high summoners, the Fayth, the aeons, and any guardians who made it to the final pilgrimage. Even Sin and Yu Yevon are given their dues because they used to be people, too. Might help some people move on if they can understand that. Anyway, that takes up the entire first floor display."

He led her into one of the rooms. "We call this 'the Dream Room'." Amid the many shelves made to hold cataloged spheres for individual viewing, Tidus approached a large stand in the middle of the room and touched the surface menu visible through the large crystal ball. The sphere blinked and hummed with the familiar sound of most memory spheres, and then Seymour's sphere swallowed the room in Zanarkand sights and sounds.

"Gippal spliced a tap between this sphere and the model that Tromell reconstructed. So, as a result ..." He touched another button and a holographic display of a map blinked up before him. Choosing the sector most familiar to him switched the display to the harbor where he once lived. "You can find any place in Zanarkand that has been recorded on a sphere. So, you can see what my houseboat looked like above the water, instead of under it." He looked back to her with a proud grin. "Is that cool, or what?"

Yuna looked down at her feet and was amazed to see that it looked like she was standing on the pier only a few feet away from the houseboat. "Dream Room? Like ... the Fayth's dream?"

Tidus faced the dock where his houseboat bobbed gently on the dark water at night. "We've reconstructed Zanarkand based on memories, just like the Fayth did, only we used holographs and spheres, rather than the actual memories of the dead. No souls have been summoned to create this. It's a different kind of illusion from the one I came from," he added with a more sober tone and expression.

Yuna turned to regard him with concern. "And you're ... okay with this?"

"You mean does it bother me that I'm an illusion building an illusion?" He smiled lightly at the irony. "I may not be as material as the rest of you, but I have a real conscious." He paused, realizing they had never really talked about it like this before. Now he found himself looking at her with doubt. "Does it ever bother you? You know, ... the fact that what you see is an illusion ..."

"It was harder for me to accept you as Shuyin than it was to accept that you're not … "

"That I'm not real," he finished for her, seeing that she did have trouble saying it.

She felt bad for bringing it up now. "You are, _literally_, a dream come true. When I think about that, it amazes me so much. But to be honest, most of the time I just don't think about it. That's how real you are to me." She could tell he was relieved to hear it.

Yuna looked around the room again and latched onto his arm. "I never thought I'd get to see Zanarkand through your eyes like this. It's incredible."

He smiled at the city as he remembered it. "I thought you'd like it."

"It's a very nice surprise."

He turned the display off and took her hand once more. "But you haven't even seen the rest of it yet," he explained, ushering her quickly to the lift just as people were starting to fill the main lobby.

Yuna giggled at being whisked away again, glad to see his energy bounce back after the awkward topic. When they stepped off of the lift, he led her into a room designed to look like the interior of a Besaid home. A holograph of a view spanning the island played against one wall behind the rows of sphere shelves. The colors of the room were breezy like the island itself, but Tidus drew her attention to the large painting over the wall facing the door. It was a painting of herself seated in the center of the village near a bonfire, telling stories to the children, like when he first returned. Yuna was stunned to be staring at her own portrait.

"This is the Besaid room," he explained, pleased to see her reaction. "Up until now, it's been campfire storytellers who kept Spira's stories alive. This is a room set aside for story spheres." He checked her expression and grinned. "But there's another portrait and sphere of you in the summoner's room too, so don't get all weepy on me yet, okay? And there's one more thing I gotta show you before everyone else invades this place."

She laughed and wiped her eyes. "There's more?"

"The fifth floor isn't open to the public yet." He took her back to the lift, and they rode it to the top floor. "This level still has a long way to go toward completion, mainly because we're still having to hunt down the spheres for it, but Tromell's been experimenting with Macalania's lake water and a few rare spheres Baralai gave us from the temples."

When they stepped out of the lift into the lobby, Tidus took her to a rotating glass door and started to walk her through it, but she stopped and stared at it with a strange expression. He laughed at her reaction, guessing she'd never seen anything like it before, and showed her how to push it around to walk through it.

Yuna was delighted and walked around it several times before joining him with a grin. "It's like a carnival ride. Were all Zanarkand doors like that?"

"Well, many of them were, but this door leads to something else." He took her hand and walked her into a large, empty room that still bore signs of unfinished construction assembly. When he touched the controls of the central projection sphere, however, the room darkened considerably and they were suddenly standing under a starry sky. A space scape wooshed past them as it had in Seymour's sphere, but this one was very different. This one showed a small, blue, marbleized planet gradually coming toward them, until it loomed before them like a swirling giant.

Yuna gazed at it in disbelief, somehow knowing. "Earth ..."

"Mh," he confirmed her guess. "Baralai said it's the only sphere of it left that he knows of - well, other than the maps, but nobody knows what's on them yet. He's got a few more stellar recordings, so they'll go in here as well. This room will be for anything related to Spira's origins. We were hoping that Spira's spheres could eventually be kept in here for everyone to see. And if we keep digging through all those spheres under the library, I know we'll eventually turn up something related to this room." He sat down on the floor and then lay back, hands behind his head, to gaze up at the sky scape as it shifted and rotated showing Earth's moon and surrounding solar system. "You said you wanted to see it someday, and this way, you don't even need a telescope."

Yuna sat down next to him, but looked at him, rather than the stars on display above her. "You ... remembered me saying that?"

Tidus turned his chin toward her. "Of course."

She smiled and lay down beside him, putting her head on his shoulder. "How long can we stay up here?" she asked, gazing up at the far away universe.

"As long as you want. We can even lock the door, but I don't think they'll believe us if we tell them were just star gazing," he added in wry humor.

She smiled and lifted the Abes charm at her throat to consider it for a long moment. "Have you ever been tempted to look at the maps?"

He shrugged. "Nah. I've got everything I need right here."

Yuna let go of her charm and laughed lightly. "The advantage of coming from a dream ... I knew there was a reason you would make a safe place to hide the other charm." Snuggling close to him, she allowed herself a contented sigh as she lifted her eyes to the mysterious planet where Spira was created.

))((

Author's Note:

I would like to thank all of you who left reviews for the original posting of this story five years ago, as well as those of you who continue to give current feedback.

If you are new to my Final Fantasy X/X-2 fan-fiction series, thanks for taking the time to check it out. If you enjoyed this story, "Neogenesis" is the third of four stories in this series. "Neogenesis" is more of a prequel than a sequel, exploring Shuyin's life and telling his story up through Tidus's creation until he is released into Spira proper. Timeline-wise, book four, "Spira's Revenge", picks up where "Spira's Sphere" stops.

I will end with one additional note concerning the connection between Tidus and Shuyin that I've presented in these first two stories for those readers who are still confused, or who are thinking, "Shuyin and Tidus do NOT look like twins!" After doing a little "net research" while writing "Spira's Sphere", I discovered that a large number of fans do speculate _some_ kind of connection between the two. Based on the blogs and forums I came across, the most common belief seems to be that Tidus was an altered memory based on a real Shuyin, or that they were brothers. The game designers don't explain any relationship between them, but they obviously wanted players to mistake Shuyin for Tidus until further along in the story. Otherwise, the plot with Yuna trying to find him again wouldn't have been credible. But even after Yuna meets Shuyin in the Farplane and is asked if they look alike, she replies "only his face". In other words, even face-to-face, she didn't realize he was not Tidus, ... until he stated his name and behaved differently. So, my series is based on the assumption that the _characters_ see them as nearly identical, even if we, as players, have come to see that they look very different. As for Tidus being drawn from Shuyin's better attributes, I came up with that idea based on my rationalization that if Tidus had been a separate, real person - like Shuyin or Auron or even the Fayth - it would not have fit with the rest of the game's logic to resurrect him after he had been sent. Tidus must have some kind of unique " dream juju" going on that neither the living nor the dead can match. Being made of magic allows him to fade, rather than die, providing a possibility of being summoned back. Just a fun theory anyway. ;)

Thanks very much for reading!

_-_ M'jai


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